New Generation of Madness
by Feethefabulous
Summary: Warning: written by a EU illiterate. Anakin Solo is caught skipping his classes at the Jedi academy. Feeling sorry for himself, he makes off, getting himself into a whole lot of trouble... My first FFC reviews welcome. Now COMPLETE!
1. Chapter 1: Where is he?

**A COMPLETE work of fiction, not based on any of the EU books (I'm not allowed to borrow them :/) About the xxxs: It's the only way I can think of to make break tags. If you have a better, less infuriating way to do it, please send me a note!**

"Remind me again why I'm doing this?" Jacen grumbled. He was standing outside a room full of children, each one no more than six or seven years old. Most of them were sucking their thumbs, huddled on the floor like sitting ducks. Small. Vulnerable.

Luke frowned at his nephew. "I'm a bit short on hands today, so I'll need you to teach the little kids. Today they're just having lectures, so it'll be easy. Just repeat some words about the force and such. It's not as bad as teaching them how to wield a lightsaber."

Jacen rolled his eyes. His uncle was always short on hands. Seeing as Obi-Wan and Yoda had been killed a long ways before he could ask any questions, Luke had been left all alone to figure out how to train more Jedi. He had picked up Mara Jade after a while, and she had helped him quite a bit, but there were still too many children to handle. It was basically a one-man show, though Luke would never admit that.

Luke gave him a slight shove. "It'll be over in an hour," he urged. "Just do it this once, okay?"

"Jaina wouldn't be doing the same thing, at any chance?" Jacen had a competitive relationship with his twin sister. Neither could be forced to do a chore without the other doing one as well. Nor could one receive a gift without her twin's consent.

"Actually, she's down the hall, fixing some lightsabers."

"And Anakin?"

"Anakin…" Luke trailed off, his forehead creasing slightly. "I'm not sure. Perhaps he's still in Mara's class with the others. He's still young, you know. Give him a break."

Jacen felt his face twist into a slight scowl. He was only sixteen; he should have been apprenticed by now, or at least allowed to continue his training. Apparently, his uncle needed a half-trained assistant more than a full fledged Jedi. Couldn't he see that it would be better if Jacen were allowed to graduate, to become as great as he possibly could?

Luke sensed his discomfort and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Try not to worry about it, Jacen." He took a deep breath.

"I know it's been hard on you, and that you've had to do things meant for a person older and more experienced than yourself. But I promise that as soon as things fall into more of a regular pattern, I'll apprentice you and then you can continue on the way of being a Jedi."

Jacen peered in through the class window. The kids were growing restless. You could tell by the way they squirmed in their plastic chairs. He would have to do it, after all. There was no way out.

"Sure," he replied. But, in the deepest corners of his mind, he rebelled.

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Luke hurried down to his wife's classroom. He was late for the next class by more than fifteen minutes. If only he hadn't stopped so long to convince Jacen to help out! The boy should have done it willingly and quickly, without any questions asked. His own training at Uncle Owen's moisture farm had done him well, teaching him to be obedient and hardworking. Jacen was, for some reason, biased towards such training, and was instead grasping for a more formal education. Well, he wouldn't get it unless he learned to accept what he had.

Had Jacen ever accepted anything in his life, letting it take its course instead of grasping and changing it with his own hands? Luke wasn't sure.

Well, that was what you got from the offspring of a retired smuggler.

As if on cue, Han Solo rounded the hall, running to catch up with Luke. Since when had he started making rounds near the academy? "What's the rush?" he called. "Do you need a bathroom break or something? Cause if so, I think the flusher's down that way," He said, jerking his thumb to his right.

"As a matter of fact," Luke replied tartly, "I'm late for my own class. It's the second time this week, and Mara is going to kill me. You'd do well in letting me alone."

"Aw, come on, Luke!" The Corellian made a face. He was not, unfortunately, the kind of person to let off easily. "All your Jedi-ish heroism, running around worrying about classes, never stopping to get a drink or two…I don't know how you can stand it."

"I manage."

"Not too well, from what I'm seeing."

Luke gritted his teeth and ran harder. He was almost there…

Han stopped him at the door, gripping his shoulder. This time, his face was serious.

"Don't harm yourself, kid. You're only young once, you know." They were some of the first thoughtful words Luke had ever heard coming from the mouth of the smuggler. He was almost touched.

Well, almost.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," he replied, slamming the door in his best friend's face.

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Luke burst into the room just as the students were getting restless. Muffled groans sounded from all around. He blushed slightly.

"Luke!" Mara hissed. "Where have you been?" Her green eyes glinted dangerously, and she looked as though she were on the verge of yelling. The Jedi Kids obviously weren't being very good today…

"Well…" He trailed off. When his wife's eyes glinted dangerously, as they did now, you knew better than to argue. He opted for an excuse. "I…I was busy."

Mara barely even glanced at him. She gathered up her lightsaber and her books, pushing past him as she made her way back to her room to take a short break. Luke sighed. Everything was so hectic…so unorganized. He barely even had time to spend with his wife anymore.

He turned to face his students, doing a quick head count. Two students were missing…was one of them Kharr? No. The desks that Anakin and Ben usually occupied were vacant. He jerked his head out of the door. "Mara!"

She turned. "Yes?"

"Where are Anakin and Ben? They're not here; did you let them go?"

She appeared to be confused. "Ben came to me before the lessons started. He said that you had sent him together with Anakin to help Jaina finish up the lightsabers." Now the bewilderment was apparent in both of their eyes.

Luke glanced back into the room. He certainly hadn't sent the boys anywhere, and he knew that if they had really been helping Jaina, then they would have come back to class.

If they weren't in class, and they weren't helping out anywhere, then _where in the name of the Sith were they?_

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**A/N: THIS. IS. MY. FIRST. FANFICTION. WORK. ON. STAR. WARS. If you have any tips on the Expanded Universe, or if anything is inaccurate in my story, drop me a quick review and I'll change it immediately. I'd appreciate it.**


	2. Chapter 2: Caught and Suspended

The Jedi Academy. Typically an active place, with plenty of room to run around and quiet niches to read or study. During class times, the only noises came from the Jedi Masters talking, or from training lightsabers, cutting through the air with neat, searing sounds. Today, however, there was an extra noise coming from the dormitories: The slight beeps and sound effects of a Playstation Gigadvantage.

"You're sure we won't get caught, right?" Ben half whispered as he swiveled his joystick wildly. Anakin's dorm was usually the place where the two boys hung out, since Ben lived in the same apartment with his parents and thus had strict disadvantages. Today, they were trying out a 4-D game, downloaded from an internet pirate server.

Anakin calmly made his character jump several sharp boulders. "Trust me." he said. "Our excuse is legible, we have another hour before the next class, and will probably be able to get to the end of this level before-"

Footsteps suddenly resonated in the hall outside Anakin's room. Both boys froze. Their characters hit enemy droids and died. In a rush, Anakin switched off the wall screen and tried to shut down the buzzing Playstation. Pressing the button several times, he realized that the system was stuck. He cursed, very quietly, so that Ben wouldn't hear. Weren't electronics nowadays supposed to be foolproof?

"Anakin? Your uncle's looking for you!"

_Sith._ It was his father. What was he doing on the grounds? The fifteen year old frantically looked for a place to hide. Seeing the laundry chute, he immediately grabbed Ben's hand and shoved him towards it.

"No!" his cousin yelped, before he was pushed into the chute head first. Anakin followed suit. He hoped that the laundry droid would be out by the time they-

The thought was wiped out of his head as he fell; face down, onto a pile of dirty sheets. Han Solo opened the door to his son's room, peering around. Nobody was in sight. He pulled the covers off the unmade bed, rifled through the messy closet. Nothing. He sat down on a desk chair, running his fingers through his hair. Despite the circumstances, he had a nagging feeling that somebody had been here before…and had just left.

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Anakin peeled a pair of boxer shorts away from his face. He could already hear his father shouting to his uncle. A grimace materialized on his face as he realized that he had already skipped several classes this week, and many more in the previous terms. Nearly everyone in the Academy had been sent after his trail last time, and a short period of disgrace had followed. He couldn't be caught. Not today, at least.

Ben was still half dazed from his trip. Poor kid; he'd never taken such a fast ride before. Anakin, having to find handy places to dodge into when in trouble, was rather used to it.

He opened the door a crack-and withdrew in terror. A laundry droid was making her way back to the laundry room, armed with a new box of detergent and a package full of dryer sheets. Anakin had never felt so terrified.

Up the laundry chute, then. He caught his cousin by the collar, urging him to move up faster. The way was slippery, and Anakin was afraid that the droid would hear noises and peek up to see what it was. Thankfully, she did not.

The two boys made it safely back to the bedroom. Anakin tensed, his ears alret for any signs that people were coming. He didn't hear anything. For the most part, it was silent. He let out a breath, relief surging through him.

And as though she had hear this sigh of relief, Jaina burst in. For several seconds, neither of them spoke a single word.

Taking a deep breath, Jaina addressed her little brother in a tone that made him shiver.

"You are so in for it."

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Luke snapped his fingers irritably. The boy's eyes were taking on the glazed look of a bored teenager.

"You're not getting with the picture, are you?" He asked quietly. The boy gave no sign of emotion.

His uncle tried again. "Look here, Anakin…I think I've been pretty nice to you. Letting you into the academy was the first thing, and then when you began to get disobedient, I'd turn my back. But you really can't go on like this. And, when I think about it, neither can I."

Anakin's mind was in a tumult as he processed this information. Though his actions had been near to unforgivable, he dearly hoped that he wouldn't be expelled from the Jedi Academy. He loved training; it was the one reason why he stayed. What he didn't like was the long, formal classes. Most times, the lessons were repeats of things he had already read from old books of Jedi lore. Anakin almost snorted. And they thought he didn't know!

"Jacen was asking about you, why you didn't do any work. I told him you were still young and needed to learn, but you obviously-"

"Well, I didn't learn anything, did I?" Anakin exploded. How could Luke be pinpointing his faults when he knew that he had them, too? "Mace Windu's battle with the isn't a lesson anymore, it's a story repeated again and again! I learnt it by heart when I was already eight years old!" He could barely control his anger. Neither could Luke. The Jedi master, though he tried to keep his feelings in check, was angry. You could tell by the way he pressed his lips together.

Perhaps reasoning would help. "Anakin," he began, "as you probably know, your midi-chlorian count is very high. Not many people are as lucky as you." His attempt to make eye contact was futile. No matter how hard he tried, Anakin would not speak to him.

Luke's patience gave way. He stood up, signaling that the meeting was over. "Anakin, if you feel like you've learned enough, then you probably have. Your life at this academy can end, and you can go home."

This seemed to bring results. "What? No, you can't-"

"Or," Luke continued, "You could try it out for a couple of weeks. If you find it to be better, you can move your things completely. Your father is already on the grounds, it might be good to go home with him."

Anakin slumped in his seat. He was being expelled? Had his crimes really been that great? Yes, there had always been conscience nagging at his brain whenever he had skipped classes, but _still_…

Han Solo opened the door a crack. "Um…" he said uncomfortably, "Is Anakin going or not?" It's getting late and I have to get some supplies back to Leia. She might worry if we're not back before midnight her time."

"He will be ready." The Jedi master made a dismissive gesture to his nephew. "You should pack."

On the way back to his room, Anakin passed his older sister, who had a sympathetic look on her face, and his older brother, who just raised his eyebrows. It seemed like everyone was against him-except for Ben, of course. He was already sitting on Anakin's bed when he arrived, having snuck past Mara in order to visit his cousin before he left.

"You'll come back, right?" The younger boy asked anxiously. Anakin threw several pairs of clothes into his pack, not knowing how to answer him. Cautiously looking around, he rummaged in his desk drawer and pulled out a slender wooden box.

"What's that?" Ben asked curiously, but Anakin didn't reply. He shoved the box all the way to the bottom of his bag, covering it with the rest of his things. On his way out of his room, he patted his cousin on the head.

"Hey, take care of 'Nobi while I'm gone, okay?" he said, referring to a small garden snake that Jacen had given him as a present. "And hopefully, I'll be back in a couple of weeks."

He ran down to the landing strip, where the Millennium Falcon was parked. "Good to see you, kid," Han said, attempting to strike up a conversation. No response. Either he was in a hurry to get home, or he wasn't exactly willing to play friendly, Han reasoned. Well, that was what you got from a teenager. Varying moods and such.

"Make sure he doesn't get into trouble," Luke cautioned.

"Ani? He's always been a good kid. I hope he likes this break. Maybe when he gets back he'll be a bit more submissive."

"I sincerely hope so."

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The smuggler and his son arrived back at Coruscant slightly earlier than expected. Leia greeted them both with a warm welcome, but was secretly surprised that Anakin had arrived back home so abruptly. This changed to worry when her youngest son went to his room without a word.

"He's all right, isn't he?" she asked Han that night.

"Sure…just some troubles with his classes. He's been skipping them lately; apparently, it has to do with boredom."

"Skipping classes? Are they too hard for him?"

"Prob'ly not. Don't you remember when we had him, how high his midi-chlorian count was? A kid as powerful as that wouldn't be struggling with homework."

For several minutes, Leia relived the terrible experience she had almost had when Palpatine had tried to invade her youngest child's body. He wouldn't have done that if Anakin were only an ordinary child, would he?

"You don't have to worry about him, Leia. He'll be fine."

She sighed. "I guess you're right. Let's try to make him feel more comfortable at home. It's been so long since I've seen him last that I hardly even know him anymore."

"It's been a long time since I've known you, too," her husband said softly. Leia turned around in bed to look at him. He was right about that, too. Duties for the senate and worries about her children had almost driven her own life out of her mind. It might be a good choice to bring it back, if only for a while.

A small smile appeared on her lips. "Okay," she half-whispered, and rested her head on his arms.

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Anakin could sense that his parents were enjoying themselves in bed. He grimaced. At least they could _try_ to keep their thoughts in their own heads.

He hadn't been sleeping, after all. Merely waiting.

He picked up his bag and slipped out of the family apartment, down the hall, to what he knew from his childhood to be an old military pilot's place. It was simple business for him to mind trick and re-format the droid guarding the flat, and then direct it to fetch the security key of the pilot's ship. It wasn't a bad thing, that ship was. Small, sleek, perfect for a getaway…

As soon as he had what he needed, he hurried down to the landing platform where several ships stood. Anakin Solo, though he had been raised in Coruscant, did not embrace city life, or any ordinary life, for that matter.

Uncle Luke was wrong, he thought. He picked a helmet from the racks and tucked it into the crook of his arm.

Uncle Luke was wrong, because he was not going to spend his few weeks off in Coruscant.

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Han Solo stretched in bed. It had been a good night, and for the most part, a pleasant one. He was feeling so good that he thought he might take Anakin down to Malastare. Both of them loved pod racing. It was one of the few things they had in common.

He crept over to Anakin's room, planning to surprise him. Maybe he was feeling better this morning.

His fingers curled around the doorknob. He yanked it open-

And found nothing. The bed was made, everything was in order, except for the one thing that was missing.

Anakin.


	3. Chapter 3: Kid Most Wanted

**A/N: Thanks for the reviews!**

**G-Anakin13: Yes, I will put Tahiri somewhere in this fan fiction. She won't be showing up for the first quarter or so, but for the rest of it, she probably will. Anakin will be meeting her in an unlikely situation, though…**

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Han Solo was in a state of what most people call "desolation". His youngest son was gone, his neighbor was accusing him of stealing his ship, and all of it had been Han's fault for not staying alert.

Leia would kill him, he reckoned, but it was just as well. Right now, the best thing to do was to keep her in the dark. Han being the experienced liar that he was, had managed to get off so far by telling his wife that Anakin had gone out to meet up with some old friends. The excuse wouldn't hold out for too long, though.

He cradled his heads in his hands, trying to figure out who he could turn to for help. He'd have to tell Luke, of course, but the man couldn't help him very much, what with his Jedi Academy and all. Chewbacca? No, he didn't have experience with children, or with any resources that could help him. Wedge Antilles? He was good at matchmaking but not at things like these…

Suddenly, he remembered someone from his former life. Someone who had a wide access to ships, trackers, bounty hunters. Someone who, despite Leia's strictly forbidding him to, he sometimes snuck out to the galaxy to chat with and have a drink.

He smiled.

Leia was out getting some groceries. The cleaning droids were busy. Making sure that nobody was in sight, he started up a wafer-thin laptop, messaging one of the few people that he could call a buddy:

**To: Calrissian(at)cloudcity **

**From: SmugglerflyingSolo(at)cynet **

**Subject: Kid Most Wanted **

Hey Lando,

**Troubles at home. Youngest of the bunch has gone missing. He's also stolen a ship from my neighbor, worth 15 K worth of Credits or more. No clues to his whereabouts. Worse thing is, not even his mother knows. Stick your neck out for an old friend and meet me at the Mos Eisley Cantina in Tatooine. I have some issues I need to discuss with you.**

**Han Solo**

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Luke felt something through the force. He wasn't quite sure what it was yet, but from what he could sense, it wasn't good. For most of the day, he felt uneasy, and was barely able to concentrate on his own classes.

Jacen, having some free time, was receiving a bit of training. He yelped as his uncle tried to show him some blocking techniques.

"Cripes, Uncle Luke, you almost sliced off my ear!" he yelled. "Are you feeling okay?"

He sucked in some air and bit his lip. "No, not really. Have you sensed anything lately?"

Jacen frowned. "Yeah, a few minor twitches, general unrest? Does that have anything to do with what you're feeling?" His uncle, already lost in though, did not answer.

Luke's fears were confirmed when he received the call. He was in the kitchen, trying to resolve some conflict between two junior students while attempting to fix the stove. It wasn't exactly the best time to call.

"Hey," Han Solo's uncertain voice sounded over the microphone. "Uh, just thought you might want to know…"

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"You what?" Luke yelled at the phone. Han looked away and covered his ears. The Jedi master was quite angry. "How could you just let him go like that?"

"I didn't let him go, okay? I was…busy, and he slipped past me." Han winced at Luke's tone. He had probably called at the wrong time.

"Did he do anything else, other than run?" Luke asked. His face was distorted by the terrible reception of the commlink. Han was in a community flusher, having to go somewhere to hide from Leia. The smuggler took a deep breath.

"Yes," he replied. "He stole my neighbor's ship and made off with it. The Tracking device that the man usually uses has been disabled. No guesses on who did it."

"The thing I don't get," Luke said, "Is why he did it. I thought he was all set to spend a quiet bit of family time with you guys."

Han's inbox alert beeped abruptly. He instantly logged on and checked his e-mail. Re: Kid Most Wanted 

**To:SmugglerflyingSolo(at)cynet**

**From: Calrissian(at)cloudcity**

**Subject: Re: Kid Most Wanted **

**Han:**

**I'm on it. Meet me there at 03:45 on day 27. Bring a full wallet with you.**

**Lando**

Han smiled. Always the same Lando. Luckily, Leia had just received her paycheck. Hopefully she wouldn't notice if it went missing for a while…

"Han? Are you still there?"

Han picked up his communicator. "Yeah. Don't worry, Luke. I'll find him."

"Sure?"

"Um…sure I'm sure. I've already scheduled someone to help me."

And with that, he hurriedly closed the connection.

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Luke immediately called a small meeting with his family. Excluding Ben, of course. The ten year old was still miffed about his cousin's being sent home, and up till now had refused to talk to his father, who, as he called it, had "punished" Anakin unjustly. There was no need to fan the flames.

"Hurry up," Mara urged him. "I have a lot to do, so this had better be quick."

Luke took a deep breath and faced his family. "Okay…there's a problem. Anakin has decided to take off."

"Take off?" Jacen nearly exploded. "As in to run away, leaving us here to do all the work?"

"Don't get so worked up, Jacen." Luke cautioned. "How can you be a Jedi if all you do is get angry and complain?"

Jacen wasn't listening. Anakin's abrupt departure, partnered with the fact that he had boosted a ship _and gotten away with it_, had completely fueled his lust for revenge. "Why, that dirty little-"

"Anyway," Jaina cut in hurriedly, "What are we going to do? Does dad know about it?"

"Actually, he was the one who told me. You two might want to go back for a week and see if he needs any help with his search. Take the small ship out back, the one we use for shipping in supplies. Mara and I will manage till you come back."

"Thanks!" the twins said together, and before Luke could say anything more, they had zoomed off to their rooms to pack their stuff. A vacation!

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Anakin set the borrowed (to be more precise, stolen) ship on autopilot to Naboo. He hadn't been planning on a precise destination, actually. The thing was, he had never been to Naboo, though he had heard it was an excellent place for vacationing. As well as that, his grandmother Padme had once been its queen. Just because he was on a little joy trip from school didn't mean he couldn't learn a little about family history, as well.

He went onto the Cynet and checked out his e-mail. There were no new e-mails, save ten porn and free data pad Spam mails and one message:

**To: Jedilikemyunclebeforeme(at)cynet **

**From: JainaminusJacen(at)jedicademy **

**Subject: So we heard **

**Anaboy:**

**Apparently you've run away. Dad told us, don't try to hide it. Just a note to tell you that if you have internet access on that top-dollar ship you stole, I hope you're reading this and feeling sorry. Dad sounded pretty desperate from what I heard. **

**People that don't know you've run: Mom, the other kids here, and Ben. Ben hasn't been himself without you. Anyway, come back soon or at least reply. I'll help to cover for the endless chores I'm sure you'll be getting.**

**And don't expect anything from JacenminusJaina. He's still mad at you for running away and leaving him here to do all your work. ;-)**

Anakin deleted the message promptly. Something nagging at the back of his mind told him that Jaina was not telling the truth. He would not be going back any time soon. Besides, his family would know if he died. The force was a powerful means of conveyance.

In barely a few hours, Anakin could see the small planet looming into view within his display monitor. The craft had not done him wrong. For a little thing, it sure was fast. He smiled, settling back in his chair and enjoying the view from above.

He was just breaking into the atmosphere now. Time to prepare the landing gear. The craft was diving towards earth faster and faster, picking up speed. It was unnaturally fast. Anakin made an attempt to slow it down. Nothing happened. Suddenly, a red alert signal appeared on his screen.

"**WARNING: LANDING GEAR AND BRAKING SYSTEM HAVE BURNT OUT. PROCESSING ATTEMPT TO LAND."**

In a panic, Anakin did a quick check-up on his landing gear. Sure enough, it was no longer working. Did he have any droids to help him? There were three in the reserves. He sent them out as fast as he could, holding his breath. Unfortunately, at the speed that he was falling, the droids, meant to work on stationary crafts, were all swept off the ship. "Sith!" Anakin cursed. He switched the autopilot off and eased himself into the cockpit. Time for a little flying action.

He managed to ease the craft into a steady position. She would hold out, but not for too long. Fuel was running low. He would have to find somewhere to crash land. At the speed that he was going, it was not necessarily going to be a smooth ride.

He sighed with some relief as a large lake loomed into view. It was surrounded by trees and brush, but hopefully, he would land in the middle of the lake somewhere. Then he could swim out and make it to Naboo on foot.

He clenched his teeth and readied himself for the impact. First came the branches, breaking off and falling on the windshield. Then came a large scraping sound and feeling that nearly flung Anakin out of his seat. Then there was water. Then there was silence.

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"Arrgh!" Luke yelled as he felt a terrible pain splitting his head. It was as though he was being shaken in a blender. As he keeled over on the floor, cradling his head, there was only one thought going through his mind.

"_Curse that stupid force."_

**A/N: So…how do you like it? R and R, please!**


	4. Chapter 4: To explore new places

**A/N: Thanks, everyone, for the help. I've altered it so that though Anakin is now a year younger than his older siblings, Ben will still be five years younger. I've never really had a good relationship with my own cousins and I wouldn't want Ben or Anakin to suffer the same fate.**

**I've included some strange things in this chapter, but after all, it's the same version as I told my little sister. Here goes…**

Anakin held his breath till his ship had fully filled with water before he opened the door. Being killed via the force of water crashing into a pressurized craft wasn't exactly the way he had envisioned himself to die. If his end was to be in the sea, he'd rather be digested by a fish.

He put an underwater breathing mechanism into his mouth and pulled his bag, now soaked through, out from under the seat. It was an easy task to slide out of the sunken shipwreck. Glancing back at the formerly expensive pile of metal, Anakin realized that it might take a while for him to recover the cost. His father would have to pay for it at the present, but if Anakin didn't come back home with the replacement money, he wouldn't be expecting a warm welcome anytime soon.

The lake was dark, serene…but teeming with aquatic life. Fish were everywhere, scurrying about and nipping at his toes. There was certainly a lot of seaweed floating around, too. Some of it wrapped around his head, and he had to struggle to pull it off. Despite the chill of the water, Anakin felt warmth for this place, one which he had never felt for any other lakes he had swum in. This was different. This was how it felt to be _alive_. If only Uncle Luke had thought to sink an underwater Jedi Training camp here-

Anakin stopped in mid stroke. Uncle Luke. The reason why he had run away.

Abruptly he changed his mind. It would be better if nobody knew where he was; that way he could keep this refuge for himself. There were few things in life that he had for himself nowadays.

Well, except for one thing. Anakin looked over his shoulder at his backpack, trying not to feel guilty about the thing hidden inside it. He quickly continued swimming. Later, he would have to get back to the surface, to find a place to stay the night. The main problem was, he had no clue where he was, or whether there was any civilization around at all.

He suddenly realized that everything was quite still. While thinking, he had swum quite far away; deeper down than he had wanted to. _'Maybe I should return to the surface'_, he thought, and ascended upwards.

On the way, something caught his eye- something bright and pink. It swayed gently to the lull of the waves. 'Cool!' Anakin thought. He went towards it, noticing its odd figure as he swam nearer towards it. Stopping a few yards away, he noticed something in its middle: A bright, shiny red disc.

He had never seen anything like it before; that was for sure. It did look quite pretty, though. As soon as he had boosted another ship, or at least found enough Credits on the floor to buy one, he could send it to Jaina via an unidentified delivery service, preferably somewhere far out in the outer systems. She would like it.

He swam closer, closer, just about to grasp the red disk when-

"WHA KA MAA!"

And then a skinny hand had shot out of nowhere, dragging him to the side. Anakin's breather was dislodged from his mouth, lost in a whirl of water and dust. The disk blossomed and opened into a huge, gaping hole, complete with nasty sound effects and teeth.

A monster, then. And he had almost been lured into its trap. He hastily recovered his breather, placed it back into his mouth, and glanced at his rescuer, who was busily blowing raspberries at the huge pink mouth. He was a long, skinny amphibian with floppy ears and eyes that bugged out of their sockets (literally).

Anakin attempted to introduce himself. "Murrgh name is Ahhnagin," he garbled. "Hoo arggh you?" It certainly wasn't easy to talk underwater. He was already expecting a variety of strange answers, and wouldn't have been surprised. Still, he had not been prepared for such a response as:

"Mesa Mansa Musa Binks!"

This sentence was followed by the odd-looking amphibian's departure. Anakin had to swim hard in order to catch up with him.

"Wait!" he shouted. "What did you say?"

The amphibian looked back at him and patiently repeated, "My name es Mansa Musa Binks, and mesa a Gungan. What named be yousa?"

Anakin tried again. This time it was followed by success. Mansa Musa smiled cheerily at him, then jerked a floppy hand. "Well, my has to go. Da Big Bosses be an-gerr-rie with me if I stay out here too long. See ya!"

Mansa Musa expertly swam off. Anakin had to struggle to catch up with the creature again. This was getting annoying. "Hold on!" he said, speaking as clearly as he could. "My ship sunk and I was stranded underwater. Do you have any idea where the capital of Naboo is?"

The Gungan scratched his head. "Yah...but really far from here. Not easy to travel."

"Okay, well, do you know anywhere around here where I could stay for the night? Just until I find a way to get back?"

Mansa Musa looked around nervously. "Ehh…yah, yousa could stay at my place in da underwater city, Ota-Gunga. But bosses no like it if yousa caught, I warnin you! Follow me down under."

Anakin followed the Gungan deeper down into colder waters. At last, brimming in the distance, he could see a large circle of bubbles, all lit up with a strange inner glow. That was probably the underwater city. Strange that he had never heard of it before in his geography lessons…

After several turns, Mansa Musa slipped into a small bubble, about twice the size of Anakin's bedroom. It was rather wet, but at least you could survive in it without a breather.

"Disen my place," he said. "Yousa stay in the back area where no-body snouting around can find you. Later I come back with da food and mebbe some more things for you."

"How long will you be out?"

"Oh, about a couple of hours, till da bosses-DA BOSSES! I FORGET!" Mansa Musa shrieked, and burst out of the bubble before Anakin could say another word. Stunned, he went to the back room, where he sat down on a chair and waited patiently.

'_What a strange place this is,'_ he thought, and then, _'I wonder if it was a good idea to come here, after all?'_

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Ah, the Mos Eisley Cantina. Annoying aliens, menacing thugs, and overall, lots of drinking and fighting. It was just as he remembered from the last time he had been there. Han looked around, discreetly trying to locate Lando. At last, he spotted him. Still the same old face, cape, and mustache. The only thing that had changed was his expression. His eyes were slightly less bright than he could remember, and there were a few more lines creasing his face.

He walked over and eased himself onto a seat. "Morning, Lando," he said. "Hope it wasn't too much trouble for you to come here?"

"Don't worry. I always make time for my friends. So…" he said, flipping a credit at the small, frightened looking boy who had just brought them their drinks, "What did you call me here for? Got yourself in trouble?"

"Yeah, kind of. Mostly, I need to get myself a loan and a crew to scour the galaxy for my son."

Lando rubbed his mustache thoughtfully. "And what if I say no?"

"Are you so heartless as to say no?"

"As much as I'd like to help you, there are complications. I'm about as clueless as you, when it comes to a way to get a fast 15,000 credits."

Han ran his hands through his hair uncomfortably. "How about the illegal way?"

'_Okay, so I hope Leia didn't hear that…'_

Lando shrugged. "Whatever you want, it's fine with me." He sighed. As the man who usually had to pay the debt, Han was also the man who usually had a hard time paying it. And as the man who had a hard time paying the debt, he was also the man who got himself into a whole lot of trouble. Not this time. Not with Lando Calrissian at his side.

He leaned over on the counter.

"Say," he asked, "Do you still have some of those black suits we used to wear when we were doing undercover smuggling for that Corporate guy?"

The Corellian almost guffawed. "You mean those old tight things? The job wasn't even worth the trouble, why do you want those?"

A smile tugged at the corner of Lando's mouth. "Well, it's either to do or do without, and in the job I'm planning, it would be a lot easier to do with."

Han eyed him suspiciously. "Nothing stupid, right?"

"Nothing stupid at all."

Han sighed emphatically, then grinned. "Lando, my friend, you've got yourself a deal."

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It was night time, naturally. Seeing as it was the only setting where everything was basically dark. Lando climbed into the pilot's seat, sullenly tugging at his suit. "I forgot how fat I was," he muttered. "Comes from too little action and too much good living."

Han paid little attention to this comment as he shoved a small briefcase full of tools out from underneath a seat. "Are we doing this or not?" he asked. "I thought you said you'd stick your neck out a little; are you really going to chicken out so fast?"

Lando bit his lip. "Okay, then," he said, "Let's go." He took the ship out, flying as fast as he possibly could. Han had specified that they finish the job quickly, despite the fact that Leia was out on another Diplomatic Errand. Poor man, Lando thought pityingly. Han hadn't been the same since he had gotten married. He must have been henpecked nearly every day.

It took quite a time, but finally, they could see large planet looming into view. Han, who had been sipping some of Lando's finest wine, checked to see what planet it was…and nearly spit everything out of his mouth. They were approaching Taris.

"Excuse me?" he spluttered to Lando. "Taris has been deserted for…ages! As in three millennia! There are no life forms there, no nothing. You've tricked me." He grappled for the ship controls. Lando calmly kept him back.

"After all these years, you still don't trust me?" He asked, with a pitying look on his face. "Do you really think that I would bring you to the outer rim just to take you on a field trip in an abandoned planet? No, my friend, you are not getting with the-, "At this he snapped his fingers, "-big picture. Despite your argument, there are life forms on Taris. You just wait and see."

Han chewed his bottom lip. Perhaps he had been wrong when he had presumed that Lando had completely gone straight.

The ship eased through the atmosphere easily before cruising to a halt on a bleak stretch of deserted-looking landscape. Burnt out shells of houses and buildings, nearly reduced to dust, were common everywhere that you looked. It was obvious that this had one been a prosperous city; a ghost town of things once alive. Han shivered.

Lando waved a hand at him. "Come on," he said irritably, "it's nothing to worry about. "Besides, we're not going to meet anyone here."

"Then where are we going?"

"Lower down, to the Under City," Lando replied, and for one of the few times in his life, Han felt like running away.

**A/N: Okay. That was weird. But could you rate and review, anyway?**


	5. Chapter 5: Things get complicated

Jacen touched the landing hanger smoothly. Sure enough, there was an empty spot where their neighbor's ship had once been. He was about to enter the apartment when somebody caught the back of his collar, a tight, seizing grip. Now there was hot breath on his shoulder, too. "Hey, boy," a voice said menacingly, "Your little brother had better bring me back my ship." Jacen blinked. "Huh?" Then he remembered. If this man did anything to him, Anakin was really going to pay…

Before he could be pulverized, Jaina stepped in. "Nothing to worry about," she said calmly. "He took your ship merely as a gambling bet. In fact, he just e-mailed me and said that he won twenty thousand credits, to compensate for the ship."

Was it just her, or did the man's grip soften a bit? "How much again?" he asked. Jaina took her bluff a bit further. "Twenty thousand," she said firmly, "plus the ship back. Of course, because he won you the money, we might have to keep a bit-"

Jacen was let go with a loud thump. "Tell your brother that I'll accept the ship plus half of the amount you just said," he yelled over his shoulder. "But don't go messing around like that again. I expect to see my property in good condition when it comes back."

Jacen stood up, his eyes shining with admiration. "Anakin did that?" he asked. "But why didn't you tell me?"

"Um…"Jaina bit her lip, "I didn't tell you because…I didn't want you to get all worked up." If she spilled the truth now, he really would get worked up, and usually it wasn't a pretty sight.

"Well, you should have." Jacen said, pulling her along. "Come on, let's go find mom.

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The apartment was mostly still, save the few droids doing menial duties such as housekeeping and feeding the fish.

"Any idea where dad is?" He asked Jaina.

"No. It looks like nobody's been around for-"

A sudden beeping noise alerted them to the arrival of R2D2, who was promptly followed by C3PO. "Master Jacen," the golden droid intoned, "I'm so glad to see you are back! Oh, it has been terrible. Young master Anakin has caused your parents such pain. R2 and I can hardly stand it."

"Um…so any idea where they are?"

"Your mother is on a diplomatic mission to New Alderaan. I have no information as to the whereabouts of your father."

Despite the fact that he knew his father like the back of his hand, Jacen decided to try and contact him anyway. First of all, he had a strange feeling that his father was not alone. Someone was with him, someone who he knew personally. Another thing was that uncle Luke had only let him go because his father needed help, and if he didn't help, it would be back to baby-talk for him.

"Tell you what," he called to Jaina, once he had sent the droids on their business. "Let's stay over for the night and then go find dad. There might be a tracker on the Falcon which could be sending signals right now."

"Good idea," his sister replied, and the two Solo twins whisked themselves into their old room.

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After several hours of pure boredom, Anakin was quite relieved to see Mansa Musa come back with a small bag full of seafood. He set it down on a table, cradling his head in his hands. Anakin came into the room, sitting besides the Gungan.

"Had a hard day?"

"Oh, oh, far more wors-ed than yousa think," the amphibian moaned. "I was punished again for being late."

"Your people have a strict regulation, huh?"

"Ehh…yah." Suddenly remembering that he had a guest, the Gungan opened the sack of food and offered it to Anakin. Most of the items inside it were cold, limp, or vividly wriggling. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, picking one item randomly.

"Da big boss, he dos-eh-not like newcomers!" Mansa Musa cried between bites. "Since the big bad empire took over, all contact to other places have gone bye-bye. Even now, Ota-Gunga is still not sure whether to trust humans anymore. Not many people like yousa have come down here and lived a long life of the happy." Anakin shivered. It was hard not to when you were munching on a raw shrimp head.

"So, what you're saying is that my life is in potential danger."

"Ya."

Anakin chewed on both this thought and the remains of his food. Finally, he stood up.

"Mansa Musa…what would happen if I appealed before your king to help me get out of here? I really need to get back to the surface; otherwise I'll have to go into exile or something." He had not forgotten the small matter of what had happened to his neighbor's ship.

"We-el, he might not abbregiate it, cause' after all, yousan is a human. The main problema is how to get to the palace without nobody seeing ya."

"Any ideas on how to do that?"

"Maybe. Can I sleep on it first? Usually I have a better thinking in da morning." The Gungan licked his fingers and plodded off to bed without another word. He was soon snoring.

Anakin tried to make himself comfortable on a kitchen chair. He didn't like this situation, and he certainly didn't like Mansa Musa and his strange Gungan customs. If it meant getting out, though, he'd put up with it for a couple of days.

When he thought it was safe, he reached into his bag and pulled out the wooden box, opening it softly. There lay a lightsaber, safe from harm. Though he had been asked to leave it at the academy, he had brought it along in case. It was the fruit of several weeks' worth of labor. He activated it for several minutes, admiring its glow, before putting it back in its case.

Though Anakin hadn't dreamt of anyone seeing him, he had been watched. Someone in the darker corners quietly drew his head back and crept away.

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Throughout all his years of smuggling, Han Solo had never seen a place as filthy and as ghostly as the Under City of Taris. Since its desertion, it had resumed to its natural state: An eerie, almost surreal, planet. Lando was pretty much crazy. There was nothing worthwhile to find down here.

He followed Lando through several passages before they finally ducked under a narrow doorway in what appeared to be what was left of an apartment structure. _"What the Sith could you find in a place like this?"_ he wondered. Several minutes later, he found out.

Two aliens, both with abnormally small heads, were sitting at a table, dealing out cards to each other. They were in a small, dirty room, stuffed nearly to the brim with broken droids, empty beer cans, and various shiny trinkets. Lando cleared his throat, calling both of them to attention.

"Lando!" He said in a sugar-coated voice. "It has been a long time since I have seen you-come now, sit, sit, so we can-" His eyes rested on Han for a few moments. Uneasiness soon built up between them. To prove a point, Han firmly planted his behind next to Lando's.

"Pray, tell me," the alien drawled, "What brings you to our little place? Nobody comes here anymore, mainly because whoever comes in rarely comes out." The two extraterrestrials laughed; each one spurting out a high, keening snort.

Lando remained serene. "The fact is," he said, leaning towards the two aliens, "we need a loan. Han here,"-he jerked a hand towards the former smuggler-"has a kid who just boosted a ship. We need to get enough money to buy a new one in case."

The alien seemed to consider this for a while. "Well," he said. "We could loan you some…but we have to be cautious. Do you play Sabacc?"

"My friend Han is the real expert," Lando replied. "Took the millennium falcon away from me in a single game." Han bowed his head modestly. Several minutes later, he realized that the aliens were tittering at him. His teeth clenched.

'_Let them do whatever they want; I'll show those stuffed shirts. The creator didn't do them wrong when he gave them heads that size.'_

He leaned over the table to the surprised extraterrestrials. "Say, why don't you and I play a little game together?" he asked. "If I win, you two hand over the money. If I lose, I'll handle any work that you want me to do, whether smuggling or bounty hunting or…whatever, as long as I get the money when I'm done."

The second alien's eyes glittered greedily. "My friend is one of the best Sabacc players in the galaxy," the other one explained. "Are you sure you want to take this bet?" He burst into a round of tittering again. Han narrowed his eyes. "I will."

"All right then!" Lando clapped his hands. "Deal the cards. What type do you want to play, Random Sabacc?"

Thirty minutes later, Han and the alien were still pitted against each other. Lando would occasionally call out different rules, and the two men would merely nod their heads and continue. Finally, Han Solo found a Pure Sabacc. He was pretty sure he was going to win this round. "Pure Sabaac. Take that, you extraterrestrial idiot," he said.

At the same time that Han spouted out the word 'idiot,' his opponent lay down his cards. A two. A three. An Idiot. His friend whooped in triumph. Lando just looked glum.

"Hold on, you can't do that!" Han was on his feet. "That is an illegal move; I won this game, not you!" "No, you lost." Lando cut in. "I was the randomizer, so I know. He won with the Idiot's Array."

Han kicked himself-literally. Why hadn't he been listening? The alien smirked at his obvious fury. "Good game, though. And now…about your wager."

"Yeah?" Han turned furiously at him. "You won, so now what?"

The alien handed him a slip of paper. Han read it-and nearly choked.

"Two thousand Womp Rat pelts? Are you mad?"

"No." The alien went over to a computer screen, opened up a program file. "Nowadays, Womp Rat pelts are fetching high prices in the Black Market. Most marketers use them to duplicate expensive furs. Not many people notice the difference if you soak them well." Lando chewed his lip. Things weren't quite going as he had expected…

"Find me double the amount and you will get the amount of credits that you need." Was it worth the trouble?

Well, there was no other way. Han and Lando shook hands with the alien. "Deal."

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Leia Organa calmly checked the readings on her screen. Just as she had planned, she was heading towards her brother's academy. Within minutes, she would be there. There were some things she had to talk about with her brother, and they certainly weren't rants about how hard it was to be an ambassador.

Unlike most times, when she went on other visits to distant planets, Han had actually seemed happy to have her leave. That had been the first clue. Being the worried mother/wife, she had hacked into his e-mail inbox, discovering all sorts of letters from a man called "Calrissian at Cloud City." Naturally, she knew exactly who that was-and that Han had promised not to see him.

Why the deception, then? It was simple. Leia knew that Han would never lie to her unless he was really worried about something. She had felt something through the force, but not being sure, she was going to stop by at Luke's place before she went along to New Alderaan.

"Luke?" she called once she had stepped into the main Hangar bay. Nobody answered. She decided to visit him in his apartment.

Ben was there, sulking in a chair. "Hello, Ben," she said. "Do you know where your dad is?"

"In his room. He has a headache."

This statement worried Leia. She opened the door to see Luke sleeping in a far from calm state. Every so often he would thrash and groan about cheating at cards and the taste of shrimp heads. So he had felt it too.

Leia was about to wake him up when, in a sudden effort to hit an imaginary being, Luke's fist landed between her eyes.

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**A/N: That took a little longer to write, since there were so many weird things happening. Recently I also discovered that Luke's jedi academy is later deserted, and that Coruscant falls(good old wookiepedia). I _hate_ the ****Yuuzhan Vong**

**Anyway: I slightly modified some info in previous chapters, seeing as they were inaccurate. Please R and R. If there is anything else I should know, feel free to point it out. **


	6. Chapter 6: Dead in a heartbeat, or not?

**A/N: Okay, thanks for all the reviews! I'll probably be updating once a week from now on, since I also have a lot of things to do in real life (I'm moving, plus it's my hectic last year at home). Inspiration was high this Saturday, though…**

When Mara Jade found her sister in law lying unconscious on the floor of her bedroom, her first instinct was to check to see whether she was all right. When she realized that she had merely been knocked out, and from the looks of it, Luke had done it. She immediately ripped the covers off her husband.

"Luke!" She screeched. "Feeling a bit insensitive today?" The Jedi master opened his eyes, blinking rapidly as he shook the sleep from his head. "Huh?"

"You just hit your sister and you didn't even feel a thing?"

"Um…not really." Luke replied sheepishly. He got up and quickly force-lifted his sister onto his bed. "Do you want me to keep an eye on her?"

"Yes. She'll probably be having a blinder of a headache when she gets up. You might want to put this on her forehead to suppress it." She handed him a washcloth, probably filled with some sort of medicinal herb. Luke wrinkled his nose.

"Trust me. She'll be up in less than thirty minutes. Just keep an eye one her, okay?" She turned to leave. At the same moment, something crashed in the next room. "Oops," a small voice said. It was Ben. Again.

"Keep an eye on her," Mara repeated, and rushed out of the room.

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The twins had been trying almost all night to track their father. With computers at the stage they were in now, it had been pretty easy. All the twins had to do was to search through thousands of databases to see whether their father had landed in any of the spaceports scattered around the galaxy.

New Alderaan…to Corellia…to beyond…

Jacen was slumped over the keyboard already. Fighting the sleep from her eyes, Jaina continued to search. It appeared as though her dad hadn't turned up in any of the major planets. Nobody had seen him, not even the bounty hunters who were usually tracking him…

Suppose there was a tracker on the Millennium Falcon? Could she manipulate it from such a distance? Jaina remembered that after Chewy had died, she had bugged the ship with a tiny droid to assure herself that when he flew, her father wasn't going crazy with guilt (and to make sure he wasn't being distracted by his wife's presence as the new co-pilot, either). Was it still accessible?

She logged into her control panel and typed in:

Name: Jainaminusjacen

Password: LoveEwanMcGregor

It still worked! But why hadn't she changed her password after all this time, anyway? No matter now. She checked the status of her little bug, which was amazingly, still working.

"Jacen!" she hissed, pulling her brother from his slumber. "I'm in!"

"In what?" came the groggy answer.

"Okay, remember that tracking bug I put on dad's ship? I'm going to try and use it to find out where he is."

"Cool!" All signs of sleepiness disappeared from Jacen's eyes, and he joined his sister at the keyboard. "Ask it to locate the Falcon."

Jaina tried, she really did. All she got was a small pop-up and a red beeping signal.

'**Too far from any information ports to compute location.'**

"He wouldn't usually go that far. He must be in the outer rim-wait, now it's getting into range. He's going towards…Tatooine?"

"And why the Sith would he want to go there?"

Throughout all their excitement, Jaina and Jacen did not feel the shadow of a ship landing in the hangar bay. They did not hear the ring of the elevator, or the opening of the sliding doors until the last moment. At which time, of course, it was too late.

"What are you doing?" Leia asked. Exactly thirty minutes after Luke had placed the compress on her forehead, she woke up with her headache gone. A quick discussion with her brother had sent her back home immediately, to find the twins. Crossing the room, she tried to peer over their shoulders. Automatically, the twins pressed their backs against the screen, trying to cover up what they had discovered. However, Leia had already seen the hacked databases queuing up on the screen. "What's that?" She asked suspiciously. "Nothing," they replied at the same time.

Their mother remained unconvinced. "Also, where's Han? Your uncle said that he sent you two back to help him." Neither of the twins responded.

The look on Leia's face was far from thrilled. "Well," she sighed, "Since you have no reason to come home, and your uncle needs lots of help, maybe you should go back. I'll find Han."

"Hold on, we can help!" Jacen cried. "I mean, finding our brother is way more important than helping Uncle Luke."

Finding our brother? Leia froze. "Say that again?"

"You mean you didn't know that Anakin was missing?" Jacen asked in confusion. Leia shook her head, dropping her files on the floor. The situation was worse than she had thought.

"Okay, you two. Thanks for your help, but now I can probably handle this. I know your father better than you think."

"No really, mom! I mean, look at all this stuff we found out." Jaina gestured towards their findings. Jacen, suddenly realizing the trouble he had brought onto his mother, tried to hide them.

"That's very nice, kids, and I appreciate it. Now might be a good time to-hey, where did you get all that Spaceport information?"

Bummer. How could they answer this question? Their mom was already getting suspicious.

"That's it." She finally said. "From now on I'll take over this case. You two…well, since you're obviously biased towards your uncle's list of Chores, you can stay with the neighbors.

"That old man? Sheesh, he hasn't even had kids himself!" Jacen's mother glared at him. "I meant the other neighbor. She's nice."

"Oh, come now, she's even worse! Have you ever smelled her perfume? She uses it on every single thing in the house. It's like a mixture of dad when he's been getting high and Uncle Luke when he forgets to wash up-"

"Just go!" Leia ordered. "I didn't let you stay back here just to put up with your attitudes! I'll call her; I'm sure she'll understand. Now get ready." The twins sulkily obeyed.

After scanning her children's findings, Leia pulled her chair up and contacted her brother. "Luke?" She asked through the Holovid screen. "Other than the fact that Han is in the outer rim, what else did you hide from me?"

For a full thirty seconds, all she got in reply was the crackle of bad reception and her brother's corny, embarrassed grin.

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Han took the Blaster Guns out of the back of the ship, tossing one to Lando. "So, with the time we have, how many do you think we'll have to catch every day?

Lando counted on his fingers. "Hmm…we have about ten days to catch all those Womp rats, so our average quarry count per day would have to be…400.

Han gritted his teeth. All those furry little mammals, due by the last light of the twin suns. Had he been drugged, or drunk, or _something_ when he had accepted the deal? He didn't think he had been, but just in case, he made a vow never to buy too many beers again. Slipping his gun into its holster, he nodded to Lando, and the two men set off.

After a while, Han spotted a Womp rat not more than a hundred yards away. Beckoning for Lando to come, he quickly ducked behind a jagged rock. The furry mammal jerked its head up to look around, but as nothing was to be seen or heard, it went back to foraging around in the dust.

Han squeezed one eye shut and cocked his gun. The Womp rat heard it. The blaster was fired.

After the cloud of smoke emerging from the ground cleared, Lando ran over to check whether the shot had been true. There was nothing there. To the east, a Womp rat was nimbly hopping away, its fur barely grazed.

"What the-"Han stuttered, "I mean, didn't I get it? But-"

Lando put a hand on his shoulder in an annoyingly soothing way. "But maybe those little creatures are faster than anyone expected. We might still be able to finish today's job if we work hard."

"Wasn't this supposed to be a get-rich-quick scheme?"

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"This is…nice." Anakin was adjusting his tunic in Mansa Musa's "flusher". It held a similar likeness to the dung pits he had often read about but never experienced. Until now, of course.

He attempted to walk around, but fell into a pile of mud for his trouble. The flippers that he had been loaned felt as artificial and as clunky as they looked. Mansa Musa entered, bringing with him a U-shaped band and a strange cone attached to a string. Upon seeing Anakin and his mud-covered clothing, he let out a loud howl of laughter.

"Oh, would you quit it?" Anakin said in an irritated voice, attempting to scrape the mud off his clothes. "Ehh, never mind da mess," the Gungan replied cheerily. "Itsa washes off when yousa go swimming. Now for da finishing touch," and with that, he slipped the horseshoe onto Anakin's head and strapped the cone on his face.

"Yousa now a hundred and one percent Gungan," he said, handing the teenager a mirror. Summing up his bravery-he would _not_ allow himself to shout-Anakin looked into the mirror.

What followed was a loud banging noise, followed by several strangling gurgles and what sounded like the expulsion of mud from the mouth. Anakin was sitting on top of Mansa Musa, one hand next to his jugular and the other one scrabbling underneath his shirt. The eyes on the headband were crooked, as was the irregular, plastic snout. It wasn't as if he were about to kill the creature, though. Just give him a scare to pay him back for his trickery.

"Okay, okay. I won't do dat anymore. You hafta disguise yousen, though. I was just tryin' to help."

Anakin was still wary of the Gungan. He didn't like being made a fool of, and from what he had already seen of Mansa Musa, he was considerably immature. This time, he decided to let him go-for now.

"I'll be keeping an eye on you," he cautioned. "Now tell me, how would I be able to get out of here?"

"Da palace keeps a lot of Bongos in da reserves. Yousa have credits? If so, I borrow it for yousa."

"Actually, no, I'm a bit short on cash right now. Why do you think I have to get up immediately?" Anakin held his breath and waved his hand in the Gungan's face. "If you want, we could sign an agreement. You show me your…bongo now, and I'll come back with your money after a certain amount of time."

The poor creature completely submitted to the mind trick. "Sure, sure. Yousa make it up and all. Moi-moi is not a lit-turr-rated person."

After some grumbling on the Gungan's part about not knowing how to read tiny handwriting, Anakin managed to create a simple agreement that Mansa Musa could at least understand. "Okay," he said impatiently, "So now can you bring me over to your palace? It's getting boring here."

"Sure. Just remember to bring yousa items. Hurry, put on yousa disguise. And whateva you do, act like me!" Mansa Musa didn't even wait for a reply before he burst out and away.

It took a lot of struggling, but Anakin managed to get everything on straight and the contents of his bag organized before his guide disappeared from view completely. His lightsaber was hanging from his belt, wrapped in a water proof cloth to keep it nearby and safe at the same time.

"Hold on…sa, wait up!"

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Nobody likes to be shouted at. Since he was ten years old and rather a nuisance, Ben Skywalker had experienced this feeling many times. Today, he had felt it rather keenly, seeing as he had mostly been pushed around by the other students. Anger was something to be kept in check, he reasoned, but that didn't mean you couldn't expulse it every now and then.

After he had broken the lamp and was scolded yet again, he had moped around until he realized that Aunt Leia was talking with his father. Mostly about Uncle Han-probably he had gotten himself drunk or lost again.

Creeping after his aunt, he followed her down to the hangar bay, where her ship was docked. He was still in a bad way after his mother's lecture, and decided to give her a little scare. He was going to be with family, anyway…

Following his aunt into the ship, he silently tucked himself under a side table and kept himself hidden from view. Soon after, he felt the ship rock and start off. It took all his willing not to sprawl out over the floor.

Quite a while later, he woke up again. Everything was still. Was he there already? Cautiously, he stole out of the ship. Yes, this was where his aunt lived-but there were several apartments in front of him. Which one could it be?

'I'll try the first one,' he thought, and walking towards it, he pressed the button that would open the doors. When they opened, he stepped inside, immediately covering his nose from the funny smell of the floor.

The doors closed, and Ben was enclosed in the darkness. 'Please enter your desired floor number and password,' a screen read. They lived in number 283…so it would be floor 2. Password…uh oh.

Numbers started to count down on the screen. He had two minutes. If time ran out, what would happen? He activated his training lightsaber and ran it through the closure in the doors. Too bad its power was limited.

Maybe his mom was right and he really was useless. Ben kicked the doors, his only result being the increased rapidity of the countdown. He tried to think straight. What would his father have done?

It was only too bad that he wasn't at all like his father.

**A/N: Just so you know, I do not like Ewan Mcgregor.**


	7. Chapter 7: Imprisoned in mind and body

**A/N: Now that I know so much more about Star Wars (bless the Wookiepedia) I am quite embarrassed about my story and the way I've turned it out. However, I started it; therefore I shall continue to write and update it. Please R and R.**

Anakin slid quietly into the clear bubbles that made up the underwater palace of Otoh-Gunga. For the most part, everything was quiet, but somewhere from within, he could hear the shouts and commands of the Gungan officers.

"Thisen way," Mansa Musa whispered, pulling Anakin behind a statue made of coral. "Da Bongos are on the west side. I have things to do first; can you find yousan way there?"

Anakin shrugged. "If you give me instructions."

"Okey-day. Yousan hafta go down the right way or suffer da grave consequences! First, follow the small bubble lights underneath disen platform, until you see a tunnel fork. Dive into the right side, den swim until you find da third air pocket. There should be another tunnel leadin' up into the Bongo Bay.

"Got it," Anakin said, and hurried down the tunnel.

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Mansa Musa made sure that he had left before he snuck down another path. This one led deeper underground, to a mucky, slimy cavern, full of large holes and pits. This was the dungeon, where the dangerous undersea creatures and Gungans awaiting their sentence were kept.

Mansa Musa carefully took a small pouch from under his shirt and walked through the length of this cavern. An octopus extended a slimy tentacle over his foot, causing the Gungan to shrink back in disgust. Carefully picking his way through the mass of creatures, he finally found the second-to-last cell.

"Fatha?" he asked.

"Mansa Musa? Is disen you?"

"Ehh…yah. I bought you some fish."

"Thanks." Jar-Jar Binks wolfed down the food. Since he had been placed here several months ago, he had barely been given anything suitable to eat. The only thing that sustained him was his son, who was as faithful as a dog, plus kept good company.

If only he had been a little more composed while speaking as a Representative, he might not have made that fateful mistake which had landed him here. It was too bad that Gungans were born with naturally long and annoying tongues; otherwise things might have gone more smoothly.

"So," Mansa Musa interrupted his chain of thoughts, "Have ya decided how yousa are going to escape?" "Shush!" his father cried, slapping his hand over his mouth. "We are being watched!"

"Ehh…so?" his son replied. Jar-Jar sighed. Since he had been kicked out of the Senate, he had set to thinking more. As a result, he was twice as wise as he had been before he had been given the boot. Unfortunately, Mansa Musa did not seem to have felt the same way.

Well, he would just have to be forced to learn. Jar-Jar changed the subject. "Is everything all right at home?" "Nah. I tripped over da Boss's feet while giving him his food. So, I was suspended for several weeks.

"Mansa Musa Binks," his father scolded, "Do you want to end up like me, stuck in a mis-err-able pit underneath with the scary undersea monsters? At least yousa can try to be less clumsy?"

Mansa Musa's head drooped. "Sorry," he apologized, "I will try."

"Good," his father replied huffily. "Now go backen to your business." Mansa Musa left hurriedly, to catch up with Anakin. On his way back up, he stopped to pull a barnacle off the cavern which, as the Boss has told him, contained a Special Prisoner. "Oh, yousa stop being naughty," he told it as he threw it into a container of water.

The captive was leaning against the wall of the cavern, repeatedly pressing a sponge that was growing next to her. "Hey!" she shouted. "When are you going to bring my next meal? I'm starving!"

"Okay, okay!" Mansa Musa threw up his Gungan arms. "I'll let the cook know." Idiotic humans…he thought as he slunk away. The girl always creeped him out whenever he passed her. Since he had Anakin the other day, those feelings were confirmed.

The strangest part was that every time either of them passed him, he could feel a strange aura coming from them. It felt like the Jedi power that his father had often told him about…but then of course, there was also the possibility that they were Sith. Unless you could tell their energies apart, they radiated the same kind of power. Unfortunately, he, being a Gungan, couldn't tell which was which.

Just in case, he would be careful whenever he was around them. If he had just led a disguised Imperial Spy to his homeland, he was going to be in big trouble. Better safe than sorry, after all.

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Tahiri watched him leave with loathing. That idiotic Gungan had been the one to report her as a spy, when all she had been doing was tracking down her best friend Anakin. Of course, she hadn't been spying on Master Luke, or overheard any of his family troubles, for that matter. Ben had e-mailed the entire thing to her.

After much meditation, she finally decided to go and look for him in Naboo, where she was pretty sure that he had gone. Having been on Tatooine while visiting Sliven, her foster father, she had been closer to Naboo than Anakin, and had thus made it there first. However, she had not known that. After scouting the city, she had gone further in, to the uninhabited part of the planet.

Losing her way in the vast jungle, she had stopped to camp by a large lake, where she had gone swimming. Unintentionally, she led herself to Ota-Gunga, where that loser of an amphibian had spotted her and screamed the alarm.

Now, she was in a filthy cavern that was hardly even large for her to lie down. Her lightsaber had been taken away, leaving her defenseless. There was barely any chance to mind trick the guards, not when they were droids who were programmed to shoot anyone who tried anything nasty.

Her only hope was if Anakin found her and decided to make his way to her cell. Unfortunately, there wasn't much of a chance for that. As Threepio would have quoted: "Mistress Tahiri, I am afraid to say that the odds are one million to one."

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"For the last time," Jacen repeated to his sister, "She's only an old lady. Tell me, what harm could she possibly do to us?"

"Um…how about a lot?" Jaina muttered. She still felt miffed about being "babysat". She was a teenager, for goodness sakes! Were it not for her twin brother and her computer, she wouldn't be able to survive. Despite the fact that they had been forbidden to continue on their search, the Solo twins were planning to keep up their work even during an exile from their home. They still had their Human Rights, after all…

Jacen pressed his thumb against the speaker button. "Mrs…Degrasimo?" he said. "Are you in there?" At first, he did not hear anything but a tinny clink, monotonous but steady in the background. Finally, a voice called, faint but clear, "Yes, I am. Pray, come in; your mother has told me all about your little dilemma."

Jacen went in first. His sister had been right in her comment about the smell of the house; it did have a strange odor about it. It sent a chill up his spine, though he couldn't ascertain why.

The woman who came out from the kitchen was barely up to anyone's standards. She was small, her frail body hunched over a cane and her hair tied back in a thin, straggly bun. Her old-fashioned dress signified that she was clearly used to a different time and era. Jaina could have laughed, but her politeness took over.

"Hi," she laughed, trying to sound comfortable when she wasn't. "Well, now that all that is over, why don't you show us around?" Following that sentence, the twins were brought all over the apartment, showed where everything was, and then led to their rooms.

"Enjoy your stay! Dinner is at 06:00," the eccentric woman chirped, and then left them to settle in.

_She's…kind of weird, huh?_

_You really think so? Okay, then take a look at my room. It's full of old memory chips, which, according to the labels, hold all the information about what happened in Uncle Luke's glory days. In other words, this person is a history freak._

_Strange how she lives next door to us and never came over to ask mom or dad about it, huh?_

_Maybe she didn't know._

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Ben was running out of time. He pressed all the buttons he could think of, quickly calculating all possible combinations. There wasn't enough time for him to do them all. He was virtually helpless.

Five…four…three…two…one…

At precisely the last moment, of course, the doors slid open, revealing a cleaning droid on his way up. He spotted Ben. "Name?"

"Uh…Ben."

"Password?"

What was with all the tight security in this building? Ben had a bad feeling about staying around too long. Quickly, he dodged past the droid into the open Hangar Bay.

"Hey!" he heard it call behind him, but Ben was far too busy trying to find somewhere to go. He spotted a speeder, and ran towards it, shouting at the driver. "Hi," he said. He was almost out of breath. "Do you think you could take me to the…old Jedi temple?" The driver raised an eyebrow. "That old place? Why?" Ben chewed on this for a moment. "Uh…just because. I have ten credits that I could give you."

The driver's eyes lit up at the mention of the money. Pulling back on the throttle, he took the craft out into the night. Ben gazed out at the ecumenopolis below him. It wasn't as peaceful as Yavin 4; that was for certain. Right now, though, Ben had a mission, and that was to find his cousin, Anakin. He would stop at the Jedi temple to stay the night and perhaps attempt to call on the old Jedi Masters to help him. He would then call Jacen and Jaina.

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'Dear dad. Aunt Leia let me go home with her for the weekend. Everything's okay. You can even call her to confirm it.'

Luke, after reading this, had immediately retired to his room. He wasn't able to make calls. A naughty kid had disabled his Commlink. As a result, he was now sitting at his desk, fixing the circuits while writing a letter to request more funding.

'_Dear Senate,'_

'_For a while, the Jedi Academy on Yavin 4 has gone without much funding or people to help with the training. Recently, I noticed that…'_

Buzz! Zap! Luke quickly pushed a datapad out of harm's way. After re-soldering several circuits, he continued to write.

'…_more than two hundred students have joined since I founded the academy, and there are only eight Masters in total. As I know that it is impossible for you to supply more people skilled in the Jedi way…'_

It was almost done. All he had to do was to twist those two wires together…

Finally! It came together, and Luke was able to access his messages. Therer were, naturally, a lot, but two were flagged as Urgent. Luke opened the first one and was surprised to hear the voice of Leia's husband.

"This is Han speaking. I'm in Tatooine with Lando Calrissian. Please don't tell Leia, she'll kill me or somethin'. ."

Luke's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. Tatooine? The last time Han had been there, he had almost gotten himself killed. Why did he want to risk his life again?

"Anyway," the message continued, "I'm here because of Anakin. Lando has promised to help me gather the funds to find him, and to pay off the debt to my neighbor. We were about to win it in a game of Sabacc-"

So this was what it was all about. Gambling. Luke shook his head with a woeful smile. He would have deleted the message, were it not for something that urged him to continue it.

"-when things got a bit complicated. So, we're on Tatooine, trying to make for two thousand Womp rat pelts by the end of the week. The thing is, Lando and I have only caught three, and it's already the end of the first day. I don't know if you still remember, but you once told me that you were an expert in shooting down those crazy things. I was wondering whether you could help me out."

"Why do you always need help?" Luke almost screamed. He already had enough on his hands without having to help his troublesome brother-in-law win a gambling deal. Leia would be learning about this, for sure.

Before he made the call, though, he had a sudden flashback to one of his earlier days.

_Biggs and I were out all day, shooting Womp rats. The T-15s have served us well. At the rate we're on, we might be able to afford the Imperial Academy in two weeks._

Han only had one week.

Luke struggled with himself. His responsibilities and the knowledge that he had to shoulder them struggled to overcome his lust for adventure.

_A Jedi craves not these things…_

_I used to shoot them all the time at home._

An hour later, after completing his letter and finishing up the rest of his paperwork, Luke stopped by Mara's office. "Do you think you could handle everything for a couple of days?" he asked. "I've got to go fish Han out of another tricky situation, but I'll be back."

Mara turned from her data pad, her eyes focusing on his. They remained there for several moments.

Finally, she sighed. "Be back soon, okay? And Luke…" she twirled a strand of hair around her finger, "It's really been a long time since we talked to each other. As a family. Maybe this is getting to be too much…"

"I know." Luke sighed. "It's been really hectic, and now that Anakin's gone…" he trailed off. "Tell you what," he promised. "As soon as this whole ordeal is over, I'll bring you out. Just the two of us, for dinner or something. I probably have to sit down and talk to Ben, too; he's been feeling left out lately."

"Well," she joked, "The way of the Jedi is filled with Hardships and Pain, is it not?" Luke chuckled. "You have that one right. Thanks, Jade."

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**Ben is supposed to be rather annoying and immature, right? He is only 10, after all…**


	8. Chapter 8: Who's shrimpy looking?

Anakin slipped into the water, shivering as he went in. All this change, from wet to cold and back to wet, was hardly any good for his health. He wondered how Mansa Musa could stand it.

As he had been instructed, he slipped into the first hole that he saw. Something began to nag at his mind. There was something in the force…something nearby. As he swam, it grew stronger. Maybe Uncle Luke had found him and was already waiting at the Bongo bay, ready to take him back. He couldn't tell. It was uncertain.

After a while, he came up in an air pocket to replace his breather and pull seaweed away from his padawan braid. Was the next tunnel anywhere nearby? Anakin suddenly remembered that he had forgotten to count the air pockets. There was no choice but to go back and re-count. He turned around-

-and a shiver shot up his spine, rippling through his body as fast as light speed. It felt as though someone was in a state of, however slight it might have been, pain and fear. No, he couldn't turn back yet. He was nearing something sinister, and he had to find out what it was.

The water grew darker and murkier as he descended deeper. Finally, he found the last air pocket and surfaced there. It also appeared to be a drain through which water could flow in and out of a shallow pit. Was there anything in there? Cautiously, he looked inside.

A gigantic set of teeth suddenly hurtled towards him. Anakin drew back as fast as he could. For one thing, there was a gigantic fish in the pit. Every so often, he would snarl, gnash his teeth, and hurl himself against the walls of his prison. If he were going mad, it wasn't surprising. The water was so shallow that the fish could hardly attain any oxygen from it.

A Gungan guard was busily throwing food into the pits. As soon as the fish's tail had swept itself out of the way, Anakin peered through, to see if he could make out anything that resembled Mansa Musa. Perhaps the creature was in pain, and was thus transmitting the force. It was too dark to see anything, though. His feelings might have been clouded.

As he was turning back, though, an even stronger wave of force came over his brain. In that moment, Anakin caught a vision-one of Tahiri, silent in a damp corner, a tiny tear running down her face. Quickly, he replaced his breather and dived back, groping around for another grate. Would he find any?

His fingers touched something cold and slimy, and he lifted his head to look through the bars. It was very dark, but he managed to make out a small cot, a half-filled bowl of seaweed mush, and…some very familiar blond curls.

Tahiri lifted her head and stared at him, her eyes widening as she realized who she was looking at. Threepio was wrong. The odds had flipped to her side.

"Anakin! You wouldn't believe the trouble you're in-and the trouble I'm in," she growled. "How did you get down here?"

"How did you get in there?" Anakin replied. "We've got to get you out, and fast." He attempted to activate his lightsaber and severe the grate, but Tahiri used the force to bring it to her hand. As she tucked it under her tunic, Anakin caught a small glimpse of her stomach. Somehow, the sight unsettled him.

"I'll severe the head of the next brain-dead creature that feeds me this slop," she whispered, "and then I'll go find you. If they catch you breaking the grate, they might imprison both of us, and then who'll be there to bail us out? How long have you been here; do you think you could arrange some meeting point close by?"

Anakin remembered Mansa Musa and the Bongos. "Sure," he whispered. "Swim out through this grate, and then keep going until you reach the third to last air pocket. I'll be somewhere around there, and then I'll pull you out.

"Got it," Tahiri replied. "You'd better find some way of getting us out of here. Oh, and by the way," she added, "if you see a small, shrimpy-looking Gungan that trips over his own feet, don't trust him. He was the one who landed me here in the first place." Anakin thought hard. Had he ever seen anyone like that before? Maybe he would ask Mansa Musa about it; he might know.

The groan of a nearby monster could be heard very clearly. Anakin felt obligated to take off and return to the Bongo bay, so he wished Tahiri luck and swam off towards his destination. Hopefully, Mansa Musa wasn't already there. He wasn't in the mood to be laughed at by a shrimpy-looking Gungan.

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Luke's ship descended in the Mos Eisley Spaceport. He would be able to rent a good speeder here, and perhaps he would also find something to assist Han in his mad hunt. First, though, he checked to see whether Han had taken the Falcon in. As it turned out, not only had he used it, but Lando had been along for the ride too. What had they been up to? Luke half smiled. His bet was that money had been involved. Most likely in a large amount, at high stakes.

After snooping around, he found one of the former smugglers seated in the waiting room of a dingy hotel. Lando was surfing the cynet, looking for the cheapest shooters-for-hire he could find. Keeping his footsteps and mind quiet, Luke crept up on him and at just the right moment, placed his artificial hand on his shoulder.

In all his forty years, Luke had never thought it possible for someone to jump, shiver, shout and twitch in the same moment. Lando's next action, however, disproved this theory. To tell the truth, it was rather amusing.

"Got one of those Womp Rats up your pants, Calrissian?" He smirked.

Lando glared at him. "Hey, you try shooting out those creatures. It's even harder than firing a blast into the _Death Star_."

"Strange, isn't it? I could do both of those tasks pretty easily. Most likely, you're not using the right equipment." Luke glanced around at the near-deserted parlor. 'Where's Han?"

"In the desert," Lando replied without looking up. "We're behind schedule a bit, so he decided to make use of his free time and hunt down some rats."

"Good for him. Have you found any cheap people yet?"

"Not quite. I'm really glad that you're here, Jedi, we could use you." Lando stood up and stretched. "So," he said, leaning forward, "Seeing as you're here, and there's still some time to wait before Han comes back, why don't you let me in on the secret of you excellent marksmanship?"

Luke laughed. "You never really changed, did you? Sorry, but I have to make sure my brother in law's doing well first. After that, I can give you some tips."

"I'm not in the mood to be beaten by Han again. Just one? I mean, really," Lando put on a playful face, "Take a look at me. I'm so shrimpy and weak..."

Luke had to laugh. Lando obviously didn't realise the size of his stomach. "Well, I don't see anything shrimpy about you, Calrissian. You're as strong as Solo."

No sooner had those words left his lips that there was a loud crash in the doorway. When Luke turned to look, he was stunned to see Han Solo leaning heavily against the doorframe, his breath coming in short, labored gasps. His shirt was dirty and ripped. It looked as if he had been caught in a Sand storm. But on his face was a grin and in his hand was his prize: Three small, bloody, but completely dead Womp Rats.

Luke changed his mind. "Okay…so the first thing you have to do is get a good, reliable sky hopper."

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The twins arrived at the dining room at precisely 06:00. Just as she had told them, their temporary custodian had placed a container of steaming soup on the table. Jacen glanced into the pot, and had to keep from wrinkling his nose. At least the pungent smell covered up the perfume of the apartment.

"By the way," the old lady said as they sat down, "I never learned your names. What can I call you?" Jaina and Jacen remembered their manners, and quickly introduced themselves. Over their dinner, (which, despite the smell, was delicious) they briefly talked about themselves and why they were staying with her. Apparently, Leia hadn't gone into much detail about their family.

Through this, Mrs. Degrasimo listened intently, her small eyes glittering with amusement and interest as their story unfolded. Jaina noticed this, and felt quite sure that the woman was in a good mood. She ventured to ask a question:

"Mrs. Degrasimo…When I was in my room, I found a lot of information caskets in the drawers. I need somewhere to put my clothes, would it be all right if I took them out?"

The woman's smile never changed. "Of course, dear. Give them to me; I will take care of the rest."

Jacen decided to take this opportunity to bring up the Galactic Civil War. "You know," He put in, "My father was actually a General in-"His sister kicked him under the table. Jacen managed to hide the pain that he felt in his ankle, and then asked his sister through the force,

'_Having problems?'_

'_Why do you want to tell her about ourselves? Sith, we don't even know her that well! Can't you just hold your mouth for once? Shrimp!'_

Jacen had nothing to reply to that, so bit his lip and kept quiet. Mrs. Degrasimo, sensing that it was private, did not press for any details. The remaining time at the table was passed in silence.

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Mara Jade had been trained to do many things. However, she had never been prepared to teach fifteen children, three of whom were seeking the wrong kind of attention, how to duel with lightsabers. Supposedly, it was an easy task. However, she had never had much patience with slow learners. That in itself made her task difficult. At least Ben was out of the way. With that out of her mind, she could concentrate more on her goals.

Guilt pushed at her mind. She was a mother, not an assassin, for goodness's sakes! Where had all her compassion gone? She made a mental note to spend more time with him in the coming days. She thrust several loose strands of hair out from her face and continued the lesson with determination.

Her Commlink buzzed, breaking the silent swish of the lightsabers. She snapped it up and opened it. "Yes?"

"Mara!" A familiar female voice sounded on Mara Jade's commlink. "I haven't heard from you for a while. Is everything is all right there? You're not suffering from any stress?"

Was it necessary to report back every day? She barely managed to hold her emotions back. Seeing as Leia was her sister in law, she loved her almost as much as she did Luke. The former Alderaanian princess, however, still had her way of commanding and prying as much as she had when she was young. You couldn't blame her, it was virtually her instinct.

"Everything's all right, Leia." She replied. "Has Han showed up yet?"

"No," the senator sighed. "I know he can take care of himself and all…I just don't like the fact that he went to Tatooine without telling me." Despite her façade of composure, Jade could sense the fear in her voice. Should she tell her where Luke had gone? It might not be a good idea. After all, Leia had been the one to restrict Han's illegal activity in the first place.

Perhaps now was a good time to change the subject. "It was sweet of you to take Ben off our hands for a while." She put in, hoping to lighten the conversation. "You always know what we need, and when we need it."

"What do you mean?"

"Um…your brother said that Ben was staying over with you for a couple of days."

"He never came. Isn't he with you right now?"

Mara's heart picked up a fast, chilling rhythm. She couldn't go after that disobedient child; not with Luke gone. She'd call him after this class was done. Poor Skywalker; what with all those chores, the burden of his brother in law, and now this. He'd be going crazy by the time he came back…

**A/N: MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I love shrimp, anywhere, at any time of year. Well…if you haven't been scared off, review!**


	9. Chapter 9: Just try me

**I decided to update a bit earlier because of timing issues. Also, I've noticed that not many people are reading anymore. If this is due to the odd plot, I apologize, but I don't have time to change it. I am leaving for school term, starting in March and ending in around August. **

**As for the millions of technical errors…I have no excuse for that. Right now, I am revising former chapters to make it read more logically. Thanks for having patience with me. **

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Anakin dove under and doubled back to the air pocket as fast as he could. When he leapt up into the tunnel, though, he didn't see anyone waiting for him.

'_Strange,' _he thought. _'Mansa Musa had better not be tricking me, otherwise I'll never trust his race again.'_

There were quite a lot of Gungans in the bay, preparing for departure or maintaining the Bongos. On the furthest edge, a small craft was half-submerged in the water. It would be perfect for a getaway. However, how could he distract at least thirty Gungans while he crept up and stole one of their vehicles? From what he had seen from Mansa Musa, the Gungans were rather silly and clumsy, so it just might be possible…

He crept behind a pile of crates, and at just the right moment, he rounded the corner and flattened his body against a large container. Two mechanics came in front of it, joking and talking about the newest human captive. From what he could make out, they were discussing Tahiri.

There was a good chance of his making it from here. When he sensed that their backs were turned, he ran out of his hiding place. It was a bit too soon. In his haste, the sleeve of his tunic brushed against the back of the shorter. Its long head shot up and craned to see what had happened. Naturally, it spotted Anakin.

"Itsa Human!"

"What's he doin' here?"

"Catch him quick!"

Anakin picked up a faster pace. Obviously, he had been wrong in thinking that everyone was the same. A sticky hand almost touched his face; he stripped it off and ran harder. If he didn't hurry, he would be put into a deeper pit than Tahiri was in, and that wouldn't be very nice.

He managed to open the Bongo and lock himself in just as the Gungans crowded around it, attempting to force open the hatch. Some others ran to start the other Bongos. Anakin briefly studied the control panel. The layout was simple, but everything was written in a language he did not understand. Sadly, there was no big green button that symbolized the word "Go".

Was there a way to somehow sense the right choice using the force? Anakin shut out the Gungan's screams and tried to concentrate on finding the right combination to start the craft. Maybe he should try it this way...

Anakin strapped in, ignited the engine and pulled a lever. It was the throttle, all right. The Bongo began to sink into the water. Pulling back more firmly, Anakin veered the craft out of the bay and into the open, where he quickly headed further down. They would be chasing him; maybe there was a crevice he could duck into.

Four Bongos were on his tail as he veered into the depths. Inexperienced as he was with vehicles like this, he managed to lose several of them when he sped through an underwater cliff. There could be no cheering yet, though. Another two followed closely behind him.

It was getting too dark to see. Though the logical thing was to turn on his lights, Anakin refrained from doing so. To his left, he could make out an underwater cavern. Biting his lip, he made a dive towards it.

Where had he gone? In the first bongo, a Gungan with a stringy moustache scratched his head. Something crackled over his loudspeaker. "Hey! Yousa seeing him?"

"No! His lights must be off. Come on, letsa go back to Ota-Gunga and tell da Boss!" The bongos lingered for a while, and then returned to the surface. In the cavern, Anakin held his breath.

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Ben stood quietly at the site of the old Jedi temple. This place, then, was where so many of the Jedi had trained, where so many of them had lived and died. No wonder his father had never told him anything about it. It was deserted. Forgotten.

Right now, his spirit felt as empty as the ruins. During the speeder trip, he had wondered why he was going after his cousin, even though he knew that the grown-ups, as well as Anakin himself, could probably manage well enough. There was no need for him to go off and worry his mother about it. They could be sending a whole troop of people after him. Despite his conscience, he giggled.

His eyes took on another light. What if that were the whole point why he had run off? That would be fun, he had always liked playing hide and seek. Maybe he would even get Jacen and Jaina in on the fun, and then they could find Anakin together.

Grinning evilly, Ben ventured further into the depths of the Jedi temple.

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Jaina pushed a strand of hair behind her ear as she rearranged the information disks in a metal crate. '_Log from Battle of Yavin'… 'Transcript from messages transmitted from Bespin'…_History freak could hardly portray Mrs. Degrasimo's obsession. The information was quite interesting, though. The only fishy thing was on how Mrs. Degrasimo had managed to get her hands on it…

Cramming the last bits and pieces into the box, she heaved it up and dragged it to Mrs. Degrasimo's bedroom. She knocked on the door, but nobody answered. After a while, Jaina returned to her room. The old woman would be able to find it easily-unless, of course, her eyesight wasn't as sharp as her nose.

The elder of the Solo twins skipped back to her room, where she settled back at her desk. Now that everything was taken care of, she could work on finding Anakin. Everything she needed was in her bag; even a portable wireless router. When your mother had relations to big, highly influential senates, it was easy to get your hands on such necessities.

Jaina flipped her laptop screen open and connected to the spaceport database. On another window, she tracked the Millennium Falcon, which was apparently staying in Tatooine for a while. Finally, she calculated Anakin's path. If he had indeed crash landed on one of the outer rim planets, she needed to know wen and where.

In a small room overlooking Coruscant, Jaina continued her search.

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Jacen was polishing his lightsaber for the fifth time in a row. Seeing as Jaina had her computer hogging the cynet, there was virtually nothing else to do. Sighing heavily, he swung his legs up onto the bed. One of his feet caught in the night table, toppling it over and spilling a container of limp flowers. Nothing broke, thankfully, but the water spilled all over the floor.

Rolling his eyes, Jacen used the floor rug to mop up the water. He might as well throw the flowers away. They were nearly dead and deserved to be disposed of properly. He brought everything to the kitchen and threw them into the waste dispenser. Mrs. Degrasimo was so old that she probably wouldn't remember anyway…

"Looking for something?"

Jacen could have jumped a foot into the air. How had she known he was there? In the dim light, you could barely see anything but for the glow of the kitchen appliances. And talk about dim-had she been the one to make it so dark? He suddenly felt uncomfortable.

"Your brother's disappearance is troubling you, isn't it?" Mrs. Degrasimo asked gently. Jacen remained silent, mainly because he didn't want to admit that she was wrong. His brother's disappearance wasn't the only thing that was troubling him, it also had to do with being cooped up with her, and having nothing to do but sit around and polish his lightsaber.

"Does it have to do with feeling…useless?"

It was as though she could read his mind! "Uh, not really. I have to get some sleep, see you tomorrow," Jacen said hurriedly. The old woman stopped him by placing a hand on his shoulder.

"You can tell me about it," she continued. "I understand."

Jacen was torn into two; half of him wanted to run away, the other half wanted to bring his true feelings to the surface. His mental struggle was obviously apparent on the outside, as well, because Mrs. Degrasimo continued to remain concerned.

Finally, he gave in. Leaning against the counter, he began.

"Well…fine. It all started between my uncle Luke and I..."

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"You want one of those?" Pierkan, the sky hopper dealer, pointed to a small model at the far end of his yard. Luke made no sign of interest. Anxious to make a profit from the newcomer, Pierkan tried harder to convince him. "It is still quite new," he offered. "I could give you a bargain."

Luke's forehead wrinkled. He would have liked to say that he knew that the engine was filled with water and that it was an outdated model, but his discrepancy took over. "No, please. Do you have any T-16 sky hoppers available?"

The dealer's eyes shifted. "Yeah…there is one." He gestured to an acceptable looking model sitting behind a large piece of scrap metal. I could give it to you for say…five thousand credits."

"I'm only renting for a week." Luke replied coolly. It was no use to argue with the dealer; mind tricks were of no avail. His best chance of securing a fair deal was by remaining calm and using his insight of the future to his advantage.

"All right, then…I will accept three hundred per day."

"Three hundred is unreasonable. There are other places where I can rent the same craft for only a hundred and fifty a day."

"Well, this isn't another place! If you go to other dealers in Tatooine, they will be more expensive than me, or will demand that you take permanent ownership. If you want your vehicle, I will go down to two hundred and seventy-five. But that is it!"

"Then I will find my sky hopper somewhere else." Luke thanked him politely and went off before Pierkan could put in another word. The man's eyes narrowed. The nerve of that tourist! Acting as if he knew all the best places to find good equipment. Well, he would soon find that he was wrong. _'Find it somewhere else,' _he mimicked. Oh, the gullibility.

Luke returned to his friends with a weight on his mind. Pierkan had been telling the truth when he said that nobody else was renting out, but the price he put up was impossible. How could he find anything at this rate?

After mailing Mara about his situation, he went to check on Han. The former smuggler was still recovering from the scrapes he had on his shoulder and chest, but other than that, he appeared to be doing well. "How was your search?" he asked as Luke eased onto a chair.

"Not too well. As usual, the only dealer who'll give a loan is too expensive."

"Want me to go talk to him?"

"Thanks, but I don't think so. You've got to rest." Han never was good at communicating, particularly not picky dealers. Next thing you knew, the two of them would be betting their life savings on a pod race.

"Do you have any other ideas?"

"No."

"Well, then, how about the illegal way?"

Luke jerked his head up. "As in steal?" He faced Han angrily. "Why does everything you do have to go against the law?"

"Well, illegal is always faster."

Luke snorted. "Excuse me? Illegal is what got you into this mess in the first place."

"And maybe it can get us out." Han stretched and swung himself over the side of the bed. He winced when his shoulder hit the bedpost, but he held Luke off with one hand. "I feel better, really," he said. "It's night now; we have a better chance of taking it in the dark. Let's get the show on the road."

Luke's eyes narrowed. "You don't really mean-"

"Sorry, Lukie," Han said, "But I have no other choice. My son is out there, with a stolen ship, and if something has happened to it, I need to have extra money in the reserves. Anyway, I'll be off at that dealer's place if you need me."

"What about Leia? She knows you're in Tatooine; I have no idea how she figured out, but she knows! And if you get yourself into any more trouble…" Luke trailed off, waiting for Han's response.

He had played his trump card. Han froze in his steps and turned. His face had suddenly shifted to uncertainty. "She knows Lando's with me?"

Luke shrugged. "Yup. If you take my advice, you had better tell her what's up. I think there's a place where you can receive a connection. It's over at the west end-"

"Uh…no thanks." Han's face was flushed. He quickly backed up his action with an excuse. "She'd probably get into her high-and-mighty mode; verbally abusing my 'path of action' and such. If I'm talking to her, it'll be after I've found Anakin and have the money. Lando!" He shouted abruptly. "Are you done with the tools yet?"

"Right at ya," Lando replied, coming out of the rented room. He had with him an entire box full of complicated devices. "We've got security debuggers, mini Artoo units, and your good old-fashioned laser saw to hack through steel."

"Try my lightsaber," Luke replied sarcastically. "It does the job without the old-fashioned ness to bog you down."

"If you're going to be the wet blanket of this party, I suggest you don't come." Han and Lando were already out the door. "Stay here and be a good kid while we're gone."

Luke's hand curled into a fist. "Not while I'm here," he shot back. "Seeing as you two are doing something so immature, I had better keep an eye out, just in case." He grabbed his lightsaber and cloak. This would be the last time he followed Han, no exceptions. He was getting too old for this sort of thing, anyway.

"Yeah, yeah, now come on." Han and Lando turned towards a back alleyway. They had obviously been planning this since Luke told them that Sky hoppers were great for targeting Womp Rats. If there was ever a better time to regret his words, it was right then.

Quietly, Luke trailed them into the night.

**Sigh…if you thought this chapter was good or bad in any way, let me know. And no, Jacen is NOT turning into a weak-hearted wimp. Just wait a couple more chapters and see…**

**-Hollie**


	10. Chapter 10: Some things revealed

"It's really illogical." Jacen, after pouring his heart out to Mrs. Degrasimo, had relapsed into a sulk. "I mean, there's still so much evil in this universe, and we, as the Jedi, are unable to do anything but sit around."

"So, would you rather that more Jedi were on the offensive, trying to seek out these evils?"

"No!" Jacen was taken aback. "I mean, yes, but not actively. It's not a good idea to use the force to incite wars. Personally, I think it'd be better used as a form of defense. Though there should be more Jedi in case of attack." Jacen rubbed his forehead with two fingers. "I don't know…I just want to help out."

Mrs. Degrasimo put an arm around Jacen in an alarming manner. "You're taking a lot of burdens onto your shoulders," she said. "Are you sure you can handle them?

Jacen shrugged her off. 'I'm fine. Thanks for listening to me." Slowly, he went back to his room. Maybe Mrs. Degrasimo was right, but who could tell?

Mrs. Degrasimo followed him with her eyes as he left. Throughout the conversation, she had kept her emotions well hidden. The boy was still young and rather inexperienced, but he already had strong feelings towards the force and his life.

Feelings that, if not well hidden, might lead to his destruction.

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"Oh. My. God!" Jaina squealed. She knew that her brother was already sleeping, but the information she had just discovered was truly interesting. She hurried over to his room.

"Jacen! I've found Anakin!" Her twin muttered something in his sleep and turned away from her. Jaina impatiently pounded his back with her fists. It didn't seem to help.

"Would you shut up? Why is everything you do so important, that you have to wake people up in the middle of the night?"

"Just come and look." Jaina force-lifted her brother out of bed. "It's your fault anyways, for staying up all night crying your heart out to the old woman."

"I did not cry!"

"But you sulked and ranted really loudly. You could have talked to me, you know. What's so special about her?"

Jacen blushed at what his sister was leaning towards. "I don't know, okay? There's something that makes it really easy for you to listen to her. It was kind of creepy."

"Tell me about it," Jaina agreed. "Anyway. You may not know this, but I was not only researching but meditating. After a while, I picked something up, which felt like Anakin. He was feeling very cold."

"You mean-something bad has happened to him?"

"No. You see, from what we know, nobody can find Anakin, probably because he's very far away. After I felt his coldness, I realized that it had nothing to do with how Anakin was feeling mentally, but physically. From that, I ran up a list of planets that he could have possibly gone to. According to Uncle Luke, he didn't bring that much clothing, so it couldn't have been a frozen planet."

"That won't help much. There are a lot of cold planets out there."

"Hold on, I'm not finished yet." Jaina opened a text document. "There are thirty possible planets here. It would have been impossible. But then, I felt some more disturbances."

Jacen gritted his teeth. Jaina wasn't the only one receiving all these visions; he had felt something through the force, too. But he wasn't going to tell Jaina that. Particularly not when she was in her 'I'm-such-a-smart-ass' mode.

"Anyway, I'm pretty sure that Anakin was being pursued."

"Via what, speeder or ship?"

"Neither. He was in an underwater craft. I couldn't tell what it was, but he's definitely in a large body of water. From there, I could find only four planets that matched my search. Since grandma Padme used to rule there, I figured that Naboo was the place that he had to be."

"God, you're so smart. But there's one problem. Nobody has proven that life forms actually exist in Naboo's lakes."

"How do you know?" Jaina asked. "It's possible, anyway. Just because nobody has recorded it in any history books doesn't mean a thing."

"Well…fine. But we have to stay put here, don't we?"

'Who says?" Jaina pouted. "Mom is way overprotective of us, and if you ask me, I don't think it's a good idea to develop roots over here. Come on, we have a lot of planning to do."

Jacen racked his brains for a smart comment, but nothing came up. As Jaina entered some information in her log, though, he remembered what he had felt.

He leaned over her shoulder. "Hey Jaina, I think Ben's missing."

"Oh, come on. He's on Yavin 4, at the Jedi Academy."

"He is not. I felt him quite keenly, while you were busy receiving Anakin and his cold."

Jaina frowned. "Enlighten me, then. What did you feel?"

"Remember two days ago, when mom came back home? I felt Ben's presence around, but I didn't want to say anything in case it was just a mistake. Recently, though, it became stronger. Two hours ago, I finally realized that he was with the spirits of the Jedi Masters."

"Sorry, Jacen, but Ben isn't dead. If it were, we would all have felt it, not just you, his special older cousin."

"I never said he was dead. I just said that the spirits of the old Jedi Masters were nearby. Know what that means?" Jacen grinned as he executed his final blow. "He's on Coruscant. Being his special older cousin, I realized that he was trying to play a game of hide-and-seek with his mom. Poor kid probably feels left out of the fun."

"It's a lame way of having fun. Aunt Mara will freak."

"I think she already has."

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"Hey! Yousa dere!"

Mansa Musa jerked and tripped over his feet. He had to turn around to get a glimpse of the person talking to him. It was one of the higher-ups, and from the look of his face, he was not pleased.

"Dere's another human runnin' around! The boss wants all Gungans to be on da alert, and that includes you!"

So Anakin had been spotted. Mansa Musa chewed his lip. He couldn't let him be caught by the Boss. After he had made the mistake of ratting on the girl, he realized that there was no longer anyone to help him free his father. Anakin was his last hope.

"Ehh..." Mansa Musa pretended to think. "Haven't seen him. But if he starts pokin' his nose 'round, I'll holler."

"Jah, just keep yousa eyes open." The higher-up snapped the servant's eyelids and stumbled after two of his passing friends.

Mansa Musa looked on sadly, and then flopped away to find Anakin. As he looked at all the Gungans, who seemed to be one in their search for the human, he wondered why he never had any friends.

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When everything was quiet, Anakin flipped on a light above him and settled back. Somehow, he would have to get back up to finish his tasks. The first priority, of course, was Tahiri. Who knew how much longer she was going to be kept in there? They could either drown her or let her go the next morning, so there wasn't much time.

Of course, there was also the matter of Mansa Musa. Why hadn't he been there when Anakin was in the tunnel? Also, if he wasn't there, then where was he?

The bongo was close to an air pocket, so Anakin hid the Bongo there and quietly doubled back to Ota-Gunga. On the way, he bumped into Mansa Musa.

"Anakin, I hope you have da Bongo, cause deysa lookin for you! All 'round the city, guards are bein' put up. I told you, Gungans no likin' unexpected visitors."

"I know, I know. But the plan has changed. While I was looking for the Bongo Bay, I met a friend of mine. Her name's Tahiri, and she was caught by your people several days ago. I have to rescue her, too."

"After all Isa do for you, den yousa want to attempt a hero attack?" the Gungan groaned. "Dere isn't much yousa can do about it. She's in da slime pits."

"So? Can't we cut her out through the bars?"

"If you wanta risk it. The slime pits got da name from the big, slimy security system! Right above her head is a motion sensor. If she tries to get out, a big bucket of slime dumps into her pit, drowning her in slime." Mansa Musa shook his head in disgust. "Not a nice way to die."

Anakin grabbed his collar. 'Why didn't you tell me? She's going to try to escape tonight! I need you to help me with this one, please!"

Mansa Musa seized his opportunity. "Hmm…I may, if you do mesa a favor." The grip on his collar tightened, choking him.

"Tell me." Anakin said firmly. "I'll do anything you ask."

"My father," Mansa Musa replied with the little air coming through his throat, "Is also in the slime pits. Help me dig him out and I help you."

Slowly, Anakin loosened his grasp. "Dig?"

"Its one of the only two ways to get the prisoners out."

Anakin bit his lip. Digging sounded like the kind of job that would take ages to complete. "What's the other one?"

"Standing trial before da Boss."

"I have no idea what your dad did, but Tahiri is innocent; I can tell. Why is she in the pits anyway, do you know?"

Mansa Musa avoided Anakin's gaze. "Trespassing," he muttered. "I'm not sure, but I think…someone caught her trying to steal a food sacrifice to one of our Gods."

"She has no idea what kind of Gods you have, and she wouldn't do it on purpose. I'll help you if you help me, deal?"

"Okay," the Gungan replied, relieved that Anakin had not seen through his lie. "I'll get you in dere. Do you still have your Gungan disguise?"

Anakin wrinkled his nose. No, he most certainly hadn't carried it all the way through. The nose had been too heavy. "I think I left it at the beginning of the tunnel. Could you get it?"

"Sure. Go back and bring da Bongo round; nobody ever comes here. I'll come with the equipment. We'll meet back here when you see the palace lights dim."

"Got it." Anakin turned and swam back to his hiding spot. Mansa Musa quickly went to look for the Gungan disguise. So it had been settled. Tonight, his father was getting out.

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"Hand me the pliers, buddy."

"These?" Lando held up a small one with a green handle. "That should do," Han replied, taking the tool and carefully twisting three wires apart. The connection that activated the invisible security boundaries was now officially down. All around the yard, the energy fields between the posts flickered and died.

Lando replaced the pliers. "You disabled the sound and alert system, right?"

"Everything should be down. Try something small first, though."

Lando cautiously poked a finger through. Nothing happened. "We're clear," he whispered. Han grinned and slipped through.

Luke had turned his back to them, trying to ignore their actions. He wasn't going to have any part in this heist; he was simply standing ready to counter any attacks.

The former smugglers carefully picked through the ship yard. Lando stopped mid-way. "It's bound to be somewhere around here. I don't know what security he uses, or if there is any, but we'd better be careful."

"Lead the way. I'm too scared to use lights."

"Too bad Luke isn't in with us; we could use his force-seeing talents."

"Luke has always been a conservative-type guy; you know that, Lando." Han glanced back at his brother-in-law. "

Luke hid his commlink under his shirt and called his sister. Han was going to pay for this.

"Yes?" came a groggy voice. Luke cringed. Leia was probably sleeping. "This is Luke," he said uncertainly. "I thought you were going to be busy at Alderaan."

"I stayed back to track Han. He's more important to me than a bunch of debates." his sister replied. "From what Jaina dredged up while I was gone, he hasn't budged from Mos Eisley for several days."

There was a shout behind him. One of the two must have tripped over something in the dark.

"Luke? What was that noise?" Leia heard a faint string of curses in the background. "Where exactly are you?"

"Um...I'm fine." Luke replied. He glanced behind him at the darkened shop. Hopefully, Pierkan hadn't heard the disturbance. "Anyway, I just thought you might want to know that I know why Han is in Tatooine. I'm not sure if you already know this, but Anakin also stole the neighbor's ship. Han was worried that he might damage it, so he teamed up with Lando and placed a Sabaac bet, hoping that he could have a backup fund in case. Unfortunately..."

"Don't tell me. He lost the bet, and now he has to do something utterly insane."

"Yeah."

"Tell him to give me a buzz when he's finished; we need to talk. And-did you say something about Lando Calrissian?"

"I'm sure they have a good plan," Luke said hurriedly. In the background, there was the faint buzz of another electric field being brought down.

"You're with them, aren't you?" his sister accused. "You had better spill what you're doing right now, or I'll-"

"They're stealing a Sky Hopper," Luke cut in, and slammed his commlink shut.


	11. Chapter 11: Turned in

Ben was busily setting up his 'camp'. Basically, it was a crude shelter, constructed out of pieces of scrap. At least it kept his head dry.

While he crouched in his tent and chewed his fingernails, Ben's thoughts kept wandering back to Yavin 4. He didn't miss his mother, but after all, it had been almost two days since he had left. Didn't she worry at all?

The sneaky part of his mind took over. If Mara Jade didn't take easily to his absence, he would have to make her. Craftily, he rubbed his hands together.

In his Biblical figures class at the Jedi academy, they were learning about Joseph and how his father thought he had been eaten by a beast. Well, why not? It wasn't like he was really going to be sold to a bunch of slave dealers. All he needed to do was to shake his mother up a bit. That would show her!

The main problem, though, was how to get the blood. After searching a bit through the rubble of the old Jedi academy, he found some red liquid. It smelled terrible, but it would have to do. He smeared it onto one of his dirty tunics. After rubbing some dirt on it, to make it look more genuine, Ben ripped it up a bit and carefully placed it in his belt.

It took a while to find another speeder and convince the pilot to let him on, but finally, he was flying towards the hangar bay. Quietly, he left his shredded tunic next to Aunt Leia's craft. She would find it in the morning and recognize it as his. The rest was history. Now all he needed to do was disappear quietly into the night.

Instead, he bumped headlong into somebody standing in his path. Ben shuddered, but it was the other person who actually yelped. When he turned to look, Ben realized that it was a teenager around Jacen's age, looking nervously around. Involuntarily, Ben giggled.

The teenage boy obviously didn't take well to being laughed at, because he muttered something under his breath and reached towards Ben. Within two seconds, the ten-year-old's wrists were clamped together behind his back.

"Let go, you big bully!" cried Ben, kicking uselessly.

"Who's that?" A familiar female voice called. Ben froze in mid-kick. He knew that voice.

"Hey," the boy said nastily, "It's-"

"Jacen and Jaina," Ben said weakly, and let himself slide to the floor.

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After several attempts at calming Ben down, Jaina managed to package her cousin onto the ship which the twins had taken to Coruscant. Jacen, meanwhile, woke up Mrs. Degrasimo and tried to explain what had happened.

"So," he concluded, "We really have to go rescue our brother. Mom and dad don't really know where he is, but since we do, it's our duty to find him."

"I could tell your parents if you wanted me to."

"No…don't. Really, it would be better if we kept it a secret. My mom is still steamed about it."

"All right, I trust you." Mrs. Degrasimo smiled. "Feel free to come back and talk. My door is always open."

Jacen had a sudden urge to get out of the apartment. "Um, yeah. Thanks for everything." Quickly, he slung his bag over his shoulder and joined Jaina at the Hangar bay.

'What took you so long?" She asked, preparing the ship for take off. "Chatting with your new friend?"

"She is not my new friend!" Jacen almost shouted. "She is a creepy old lady who, for some reason, I can identify with! Is that so bad?"

His sister kept quiet. After a while, she added, "Ben was trying to scare his mother by pretending that he had been eaten by a wild animal. I took it away and left a note in its place.

"Notes, notes, notes. Do you think Mom will realize we're gone?"

"Of course. Our ship will be gone from the Hangar bay. By the time she realizes that, though, we'll be long gone."

"Right," Jacen replied. He felt distracted, as though something were not right, but instead of telling his sister, he decided to think it out instead.

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In a deserted farm in the middle of the desert, Han lovingly polished his new T-16 Sky Hopper. They had all piled into it, just as the dealer came out of the house. Thankfully, Han's crash course in using the vehicle had turned out to be a success. Before the twin suns could rise in the sky, Pierkan's business had become the victim of a hit-and-run.

To escape from the wrath of the Tatooine natives, Luke had brought them back to his old childhood home. The rubble had long since been salvaged by various beings, but the shell of the farm was still standing.

As his brother-in-law came into the room, he stood up and brushed off. "I told you it would be easy," he said, grinning up at Luke triumphantly. "There's really nothing to a mountain; you just have to find the right tools."

"Get over it." Luke snapped. He had his commlink open in his hand. "Leia wants to talk to you."

Leia? Han groaned inwardly. Why was she always after his back? He paused to finish up a small corner on the side of the vehicle, and then stretched.

"Is she on?"

"Of course." Luke handed him the commlink and lifted up the sheet that covered the exit. Han was alone.

Nervously, he wiped his hands on his shirt and picked up the commlink. "Leia?"

He had to pull the device away from his ear, because the words that followed were so loud that they would have burst his eardrums otherwise.

"Han! What are you doing? Luke said you were stealing something…and that Lando was in it with you. Didn't you learn anything after you settled down? Also, why couldn't you tell me? Jaina and Jacen were even trying to track you, you know!"

"Leia, everything's all right. I just-"

"Placed a Sabacc bet! And lost, thus selling your services to the winners. What were you thinking?"

Han was about to utter a snarky comment when he heard something in the background. Every now and then, there was a sucking sound in the background, as though something had gone horribly wrong with the vaccum droid. He could make out little R2-whimpers, too.

"Uh…is everything okay over there? Because I just heard,"

"It's nothing," Leia replied shakily. "Everything's okay."

Suddenly, it hit him. Leia was _crying._ He must have given her a really bad scare. Inwardly, he groaned. Why did it take so long for him to figure out women's emotions?

"I'm sorry. Really," he said in a more gentle tone. "I wouldn't have done it, but I was worried, too."

There was another sniff at the end of the line. "Tell me about it when you get home," she replied. "How long will you be gone?"

"No more than seven days. Trust me on this. I'll find Anakin, too." There was a beep on his commlink. Mara Jade was trying to call him up. Apologizing to Leia, he put her on hold and reconnected to Mara.

"Han," she asked when she had gotten through, "I really need to know where Ben is. He's not with Leia and he's not here. Could he have lost himself in Coruscant?"

Han froze. Another kid missing? What was with them and all their acts of bravado? He took a deep breath.

"I'll find him too. He's not typically a bad kid; so he should turn up somewhere."

"Thanks for the reassurance, but remember that he's only ten. If it weren't for all my responsibilities here, I'd go out to look, but that's not exactly in my range right now."

"I've said the words 'don't worry' so many times recently, and I'm not going to say it again. Good luck with everything, Jade. By the way, I have a question."

"Fire away."

"This is kind of embarrassing, but…when you're feeling worried about Luke, how does he comfort you?"

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At last, the palace lights dimmed, and the Gungan population mostly fell asleep. , Anakin and Mansa Musa met behind the palace at their designated meeting place.

The Gungan spilled a bag of equipment onto the shelf next to him. "Where's da bongo?"

"It's nearby that coral tree. After we get Tahiri and your man, it'll be easy to get back there."

"Good. Yousa hafta put on your fake nose again, but mesa guessin that itsa small price to pay for your friend's life."

Anakin quickly donned the disguise and followed his guide down to the slime pits. On the way, he was given a briefing of how to dig and what to do. They managed to go most of the way in secrecy, but when they arrived at their destination, there were two guards stationed on duty.

"Hey! What is yousan doin around at this time of night?"

"We're on cleanin' duty." Mansa musa answered with a straight face. "There was rumor that someone was slimed today."

The guard relaxed. "Yah, very messy, too. Okay, go on, but don't take too much time. Da prisoners might get rowdy." Anakin mumbled his thanks as they passed.

The door closed behind them with a dull thud. The various snores and groans of the prisoners drowned out their footsteps and words. "There's no windows," Mansa Musa hissed, "but theysa will come if we're not quick. Hurry."

He had already memorized the location of Tahiri's pit, so Anakin found it easy to make his way there. Silently, he tapped her on the back. "Hey," he said softly. "Didn't I say I'd be here?"

She turned and grinned at him. "It's about time, too. One of the other creatures went mad earlier today and tried to pull out the bars. From what I saw, he didn't exactly die a peaceful death."

"Thanks for waiting, though." He used the Force to untangle the intricate mass of ropes that held the slime above her head, then carefully poured it out through the bars. "And now, let's dig you out."

"Dig? The floor is as solid as rock."

"Not so." Anakin took his shovel and pried a slab of rock off the floor. Just as Mansa Musa had predicted, it came off easily, revealing a dull orange colored surface.

"Underneath the floor is a type of sponge," he explained. "It's used as a drainage system so that the entire thing won't flood. Mostly, it can take care of itself, but every now and then, it dies in places and goes soggy. Lucky for us, the Gungan's don't replace it often." He pried a large glob of sponge out of the ground. An odd smell arose from the ground.

"It doesn't look like it's been changed for a while,"

"Good thing, huh? It's easier to dig. Now, you sit tight, and I'll get you out of there."

"I'm not planning to 'sit tight'," Tahiri shot back. She pulled out Anakin's lightsaber. "Could this be any help?"

At that point, Mansa Musa beckoned to him. "Anakin!" he hissed. "My sponge isn't as soft; can yousa help?"

Anakin changed his mind. "Save it," he mouthed.

"Who was that?" she asked, tucking the lightsaber back into her belt.

"A Gungan friend. We're in league; he's helping me with you, and I'm going to get his father out."

"Does he have a name?"

'Yes. Mansa Musa."

"What?" Tahiri's eyes widened. "But that's the person who got me in here in the first place! He's a traitor."

Anakin thought back to the first time he had met the Gungan, and his odd, random ways. However, from his naïve and absentminded personality, he seemed to be a trustworthy fellow. Maybe Tahiri was mistaken.

Still, there was no harm in staying cautious. He leaned towards Tahiri casually. "I'll keep on my guard." Dragging his shovel towards the two Gungans, he began to pour the slime out in the same way. "That your father?" he asked, gesturing at Jar-jar. Mansa Musa nodded. "After we do him I'll help you."

The sponge was indeed hard. It took a while to pry it out, but at last, they made a hole big enough for Jar-jar to slip through. "Now for Tahiri," Anakin whispered as soon as he had come out.

"Hey! What's takin' yousan so long?" The guards opened the door. "Hurry and get-" At that moment, he spotted Jar-jar standing outside his pit.

"Call the others!" he shouted to his colleague. "Theysa runnin away!" He rushed down the corridor at the escaped convict. Jar-jar tried to run, but tripped on a slab of rock and fell. The guard, in turn, stumbled over him and tumbled down into the opposite pit. What happened next didn't sound very nice.

Mansa Musa, mean while, had removed another rock, revealing yet another tunnel. It was the one that the Gungans used to replace the sponge, and it led deep down into the water. He pushed his father in and was about to follow through.

"Hey! What about Tahiri; we can't leave her!"

"Yousa on your own dere. Mesa's not willing to turn myself to da Big Boss!" The Gungan fled, leaving Anakin alone.

"I told you he was a traitor," Tahiri hissed. She ignited his lightsaber and ran it through the bars, creating a hole. She motioned for him to get in. "We'll go through this way, and sneak out through some place."

"We can't. There will be Gungans searching that passage, we have to go down the other way."

"And follow him? No way. He'll put us in here again-"

"Tahiri, would you just get out? Forget him, okay? They're coming back-"

Anakin felt a cold hand grab his wrists. Next thing he knew, he was being forced into Jar-jar's old cell. "Keep him dere, till da Boss can see him," ordered the leader. The sponge was packed back into place, and the slime was rigged up above his head.

'_So much for a rescue.'_

'_I hope they're not cannibals.'_

'_Nah, it okay. They mainly eat fish. I'm not sure why they dislike humans, though. Mansa Musa said something about-"_

"_Please don't mention him. We'll wait till they bring us before the Boss, as they call him. Then we can probably ask questions._

'_sigh…I hope that comes soon. I hate feeling wet.'_

**Any comments, whether good or bad, would be nice.**


	12. Chapter 12: Any ideas?

**All right. I am quite sure that I'm not going to be leaving till after March 14. It should give me ample time to finish up everything I started here. Once again, thanks to the readers for not flaming me. Tired…if you have any ideas, suggestions, please let me know.**

"Yousa can stay here." After taking the Bongo out some ways, Mansa Musa had found a small grotto and was settling his father in. "After this, I get you up to Naboo. Theysa might let you back in the Senate again."

"Maybe. I must learn control what I say, though."

"Yousa didn't do anything wrong."

"Embarrassing da Gungan Population was considered wrong."

"But yousa not deserving to go to da slime pits. Da Bosses are too strict."

"Nobody likes to be made fun of, Mansa Musa."

Mansa Musa made sure that nobody was coming before he allowed himself to go back to Anakin. Maybe he shouldn't have left him alone like that. Poor Anakin was probably suffering in one of the slime pits right now, and it was entirely his fault.

He might be able to go back and try again, but now he was wanted as a traitor to his people. However, guilt continued to nag at his conscience. Anakin had helped him. Wasn't it logical to pay him back?

In the end, he went back to the grotto and curled up next to Jarjar. His father wasn't the best person to turn to for help, but he might be able to give his son some advice.

"Hey, father…when somebody helped yousa out…and then that somebody got hisself into trouble…what did you do?"

"Depends. What kind of trouble is yousa friend in?"

"Eh…trouble with da bosses. Hesa a human, not supposed to be comin' by Ota Gunga." Mansa Musa eventually admitted.

"What do you think?" Jar-jar replied. "Does he deserve to be in da slime pits?"

Mansa Musa had no answer to that. One thing was on his mind as he fell asleep, though. He had to get Anakin out of that mess…

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"I'd just as soon marry Threepio."

Han's eyes narrowed. "I drove the thing out here, didn't I? Come on, let me have a go." he begged. Luke remained unperturbed.

"I didn't really trust you then, and I'm not going to let it go now."

"I need those Womp rats! There are three days left before those crazy aliens come after my hide!"

"See? If I had never shown up, you would have no idea how to catch Womp Rats, which is why I'm operating the Sky Hopper. Go fetch Lando; there's no more time to waste. If we hurry, I can get some of those rats before sunset.

Luke climbed up into the Sky hopper and fired it up.

It had been a long time since he'd had this much fun. He aimed the blaster at the Womp rats, firing with speed. Most of them fell in his path. After he had safely gotten over them, he shouted to Han and Lando over the intercom.

"Go pick them up! I'll have more on the way, just follow behind!"

Having the force as an ally wasn't so bad, considering the increased number of quarry you could bring down. The twin suns were just beginning to set when Luke brought the Hopper back to his old farm. From what he had seen, he had probably brought down half the amount that Han needed. Not bad for an afternoon's work.

"Han? Lando?" He called. Nobody was around. A feeling of unease crept over his shoulder, and he went back out to scan the desert. There were Womp rat bodies scattered around, but no humans.

"Great," he muttered under his breath. It would be dark soon; what were they doing? He ignited his lightsaber to use as a torch, and marched through the hills, calling their names.

At last, he found them on top of a sand dune, piling the rat pelts one on top of the other. "Luke! Over here!" His brother-in-law called to him. Luke ran over to help them with the pelts, but stopped several feet away to keep from smelling the carcasses. "Did you bring a speeder?" Han asked.

"No. Why?"

Han gestured at the pile, turning away to gasp for breath. "Cause we're going to need one if we want to bring all these rats home!"

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"It's not like I was really going to get killed," Ben sulked. "Look, mom doesn't really care about me anyway."

"And how would you know?" Jaina snapped. "The galaxy does not revolve around you, Ben. Learn to deal with it."

Ben glared at her and hunched up in his chair. The twins had never fully been able to understand his life. That was probably why he liked Anakin a lot better.

"Do you think we'll be able to find him in time?" Jaina asked her brother. "I have a bad feeling about him."

"Oh, don't sweat it," Jacen replied crossly. He was still angry at being accused of having relations with Mrs. Degrasimo. "We'll get there in time. The probability of our little brother falling into the mouth of a whale is a million to one."

"It had better be."

Jacen turned to her. "If you're so worried," he asked, "Why didn't you tell mom about this?"

Jaina was silent. "Do you think they would have helped?"

"They could have. Don't start having second feelings now! We made this decision and we're going to accomplish it."

They stared out into the night, each one thinking their own, private thoughts. Eventually, Jacen set the ship to go at light speed. They were far enough from Coruscant.

"Ben, when we reach Naboo, we'll drop you off somewhere in the city." Jaina called. "Maybe you could walk around the palace."

"I'm coming with you!" replied the stubborn little boy. "Just because I'm ten, does it mean that I can't have all the fun?"

"Forget it, Jaina," Jacen muttered under his breath. "We'll wait till the last minute before we knock the brat out, and then we'll throw him into a storage compartment at the back of the ship. Give him steady oxygen flow; he'll survive for a couple of hours."

Jaina thought of her already worried aunt Mara. Then she glanced back at the sulky boy, who cast her a withering glance before sticking his tongue out at her. That did it for her.

"Sure. It'll be a pleasure."

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A cold hand shook Anakin, roughly waking him up. "Get up," a Gungan said gruffly. "Itsa your turn in front of da Boss."

Anakin crawled out of the pit and slowly rose to his feet. The guard prodded him in the behind, which was probably a signal to move. Tahiri was already heading towards the door, and he quickly caught up with her.

"Any theories on how to put this Boss in a good mood?"

"Hmm," Tahiri mused. "I could juggle fish for him."

"No, really. We have to have a strategy for arguing our case, because we didn't do anything wrong."

"We don't know a thing about their customs, though. Humans could be considered to defile their city or something."

Anakin snorted, remembering the way his former friend had smuggled him to the palace. "Mansa Musa obviously doesn't know much about those customs."

"Mansa Musa is an idiot," Tahiri countered.

"Well, he's a smart idiot, to make off with his father and leave us behind."

"Good point. Let's try to talk to this Boss; maybe he'll give us some information to start with. ". They continued silently through the hallways, until finally, they were ushered into a large bubble. A large Gungan sat on the throne.

"Boss Nass!" the Gungan called. "Here are da two prisoners." Anakin and Tahiri were shoved into the room. "The fat guy must be Boss Nass," Tahiri whispered. "He's old enough to be one."

Instead of commanding them to be silent, Boss Nass merely stared at them. "My guards tell me that yousan two have been seen multiple times before wesa caught you," he said in a deep voice. "Tell me, why is that?"

"We weren't sure whether to approach the city or not, but we were lost, so…we decided to take a chance." Anakin mumbled. It was the only thing he could think of.

"Not so. The girl was seen and captured two days before you. Yousa two were separate, perhaps, as spies seeking the downfall of Otah-Gunga."

Tahiri snorted. "Like we'd ever do that. We're kids, do you really think-"

"Yousan are not in a position to argue!" Boss Nass roared. "Is your thinking that we, a people minding our own busy-ness, are happy for yousan to come and intrude our privacy?"

Anakin remembered something. "Excuse me," he interjected, "but one of your kind told me that you were once friends with the Naboo. Did something happen?"

The Gungan leader froze. "After the fall of the Jedi," he said softly, "Wesa no longer were interested in trusting outsiders. Storm troopers invaded the land, and wesa were forced to escape to the sacred place." He stroked the arm of his throne. "When we came back, it was all but destroyed. Since then, we have not allowed anyone to come down here and survive. It has taken us a long, very long, time to put our city back." Here he paused and glared at Anakin. "And wesa will not let it fall to your hands again."

"A lot has changed since then," Tahiri spoke up. "The new Jedi order has been established; the Empire has been destroyed."

Boss Nass stroked his fleshy chin. "Is there proof of this?"

"I'm proof." Anakin stepped forward. "I am the offspring of Leia Organa and Han Solo, two survivors of the Galactic civil war. The reason why we have come-" in his mind, he scrabbled for a reason, "-is because we were sent to tell you about this. My uncle, the Jedi Master Luke Skywalker, was the one who arranged this."

"Why did hesa not come hisself?"

"He has had many complications in his life," Anakin continued relentlessly. "A Jedi academy has been established on Yavin 4, and he must also attend meetings of the new Republic so that they can get back on track."

"Oh, really? In datsa case, we can settle something easily." Boss Nass stood up, emitted several words of a strange dialect. Immediately, they were caught and dragged out of the room.

'_Thanks, Tahiri.'_

'_Like your weak claim was going to help us any more.'_

"I will call on this Luke Skywalker," Boss Nass called after them. "If the events are truly as you say, he will have to come down himself to bargain for your lives. We cannot afford to lose our city again."

**Yup, this story will probably be ending in a few chapters' time. I've got a life and mind to attend to. If you are not reading this, then you might as well take the story alerts off.**


	13. Chapter 13: To trust or not to trust

The desert sands were starting to whip against the Womp rats, half burying the carcasses and the humans who had shot them down. "Hurry up!" Lando shouted through the harsh wind. "It looks like there's going to be a sandstorm coming through, we've got to get going!"

"Just hold on," Han shouted back. Earlier on, Luke had managed to find several pieces of debris and together, they had made a makeshift sled on which to carry the rats. Now it seemed as though it wasn't big enough.

Another gust almost blew him off his feet. Luke had to reach up and pull him back down. "Forget the rats," he screamed, "We've got to get to safety!"

Han knew that he was right, but the stubborn part of him that didn't want to let go of his prize continued to hang about his mind. "Do you really think I'll let all this go, after all the work we did for it?" He gestured to the rats. "This is a quick ten grand here, you know!"

Luke tried to glare at him, but had to blink to keep sand from getting into his eyes. "Hey, maybe Leia was right," he said. "You really are all about money, aren't you?"

Han stared at him, and then abruptly turned away. "Don't talk to me about moral values," he said. "I've had enough of that psycho-talk, and I certainly wasn't expecting to hear it from you."

"Look, we've got to argue later! Lando shouted. "You can work on the Womp rats all you want, but I'm going to get myself to shelter! Sorry, Han," he glanced towards his best friend, "But you're on your own here. I have my own life to worry about." With that, he struggled away.

Han and Luke were left alone in the swirling sandstorm. "It'd be craziness to stay out here," Luke said. "If we're going to run for it, it's now or never."

Han shut his eyes and struggled with the conflict in his mind. He had to make a decision, and for his family's sake, it had to be a wise one. Finally, he opened his eyes.

"If I'm not alive to collect what's left of the quarry," he shouted, "Then the aliens I bartered with might as well be killing two birds with one stone. I say we don't give them that pleasure."

Luke grasped his hand. "Yeah, so come on." He wrapped his tunic around his mouth and nose. He ignited his lightsaber to lead the way, but soon found out about the sparks which flew from the sand coming in contact with the weapon. They would have to make a blind leap, then. At least they would have a small chance to survive.

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"Sheesh, can't you just stay put?"

"No!"

Even now that they had landed, the twins were still having troubles with Ben. The nasty little imp, as Jacen called him, apparently wanted to go down with them to see the swamp. But what was there to see?

"Is there something the matter with you?" Jacen argued. "It's really boring this time; do you need any more explanations?"

"Yeah. If it's so boring, then why are _you_ going?"

Jaina gritted her teeth and tried to use the force to mind-trick him. "We're going to see, um, Pepe the Clown." She said, waving her hand slightly. "He's doing Balloon shows underwater today."

"Oh, sounds like fun. Can I tag along?" Ben's face did not show any sign of being convinced.

"Fine," Jacen snarled. "You can come, but only after we've verified that it's safe." His sister mouthed horror at him, but he barely spared her another glance. Someone was going to pay for this, and it wasn't him.

Ben, finally satisfied with this answer, sat down on a chair and waited. He wouldn't touch anything. After all, he was getting his way.

"Don't tell me your heart has suddenly softened towards the brat," Jaina muttered as she followed her brother out. He stiffened and turned towards her, his face a picture of mock surprise.

"Why, of course not," he said. "He only thinks he's coming along. It's all a matter of time before he realizes he's not, and by that time, we'll have knocked his puny little brain out."

Jaina smiled. "Do you know how much I love you?" she asked as they scanned the waters for any signs of life.

"Far too well. I don't see anything out here; he must still be underwater. Let's get our breathers and head in."

They turned back to the ship. Before they went aboard, Jacen signaled to his sister, who nodded her head. Immediately after they went on, they started to open up boxes and compartments, pretending to rummage around for their breathers. "What are you looking for?" Ben asked, standing up from his chair.

"Our breathers. Could you help us find them? We'll need another one for you, too."

Ben almost snorted. The breathers were right under the cockpit, where he had seen them put the box. And they said that older people were supposed to be smarter. "They're right here," he said, crawling underneath to fetch the box. "Some people just can't-oof!"

The next thing he knew, something heavy had struck him on the head. Ben immediately became unconscious. Jacen put down the metal box and gently picked his cousin up.

"Instant results," he said to his sister, who had gone pale. "We'll shove him into one of the compartments and make sure he's got enough food and water for a couple of days."

"Jacen, no. It's not right." Jaina shivered at she stared at the unconscious little boy. Something about the sight scared her.

"Oh, all right. We'll stick him onto a cot or something, lock the ship up, and _then_ leave him here with enough food and water."

"Do you really think he'll be able to take care of himself?"

Jacen chewed on this for a minute. "No. I have another idea," he said, going over to the computer. He set up a connection to the family apartment in Coruscant and asked the droid for C3PO.

"Yes-oh, hello, Master Jacen! May I be of assistance?"

"Threepio, don't tell my mom this, but could you get a video connection hooked up somewhere around the house? I need you to watch somebody for me."

"Why, of course, Master Jacen. However, I must remind you that I am a protocol droid, and am not programmed to connect wires."

"Um…could you ask Artoo for help? And please, please make sure that my mom doesn't know about it. Maybe you could do it in the closet where you two stay?"

After some coaxing and an hour of shouting, Jacen managed to remotely direct R2D2 on setting up a connection. He placed a small camera on top of a shelf, connected it and asked, "Can you see us?"

"Quite clearly. Do you want me to watch over that small boy in the corner?"

"Yes! Watch over him; make sure he doesn't try anything. If he does, feel free to use the commlink and reprimand him. And, if mom asks you to do anything when you're watching, leave somebody else back there or have it take screenshots while you're gone. Thanks, and remember not to tell anyone!"

Jacen wiggled his fingers at the camera and grabbed his bag. "Are you satisfied now?" he growled to his sister as they made their way out.

"Quite," she replied sarcastically. "Shouldn't we have started by now? It's getting dark." They walked to the edge of the pond, diving in simultaneously. As soon as their eyes became adjusted to the light, Jacen signaled for his sister to follow him.

"_Come on. Let's go find our brother."_

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To keep from escaping, Anakin had been placed in the same cell with Tahiri, their arms bound together. The only time they were released from this uncomfortable position was when they were given time to stretch or served their daily rations of fish entrails. At least the intestines were usually cleaned.

Anakin had no way of telling what time it was, but judging from the obnoxious snores resounding in the pits, it was the middle of the night. Usually he felt like sleeping, but not this time. There was a feeling nagging his brain, telling him that something was about to happen.

If only Tahiri were awake. Then at least he could have someone to talk it over with…

'_Who said I was sleeping?'_

Anakin almost jumped. She had kept her feelings well hidden. That was both bad and good, in a sense.

'_Sorry. I didn't know.'_

'_That's okay. Anyway, you can't sleep either?'_

'_No. It's as if something is about to happen; did you feel it too?'_

'…_Yes, but I highly doubt that it's going to be our rescuers. For them to come straight after we met the Boss would be too easy, wouldn't it?'_

Anakin laughed quietly. _'Yes. While they're at it, wouldn't it be convenient for them to come with dry clothes and food, not to mention a ship to bring us home?'_

'_Mmm.' _Tahiri fell silent, and her thoughts disappeared from his mind. After a while, Anakin felt pretty sure that she had fallen asleep. He was getting tired too; maybe she wouldn't mind if he just leaned a little against her back…

'_I'm not sleeping.'_

Wincing with embarrassment, Anakin shot upright, making sure that his feelings were as hidden as possible. Maybe the more logical thing to do was to lean forward, onto his knees. He tried it.

"Look," Tahiri grumbled as she was pulled back towards him, "It's not exactly the ideal time for a nap, mainly because I'm not ready. Maybe you could try to sit straight for a little longer. Or we could take shifts."

"Sure. I'll take first," Anakin offered.

"Oh no, my macho friend," she laughed. "You were the one making a fuss just to get into a good position, right? Lean against me all you want. I really don't feel like resting for a while."

"Um, right. Thanks," Anakin replied. He tried not to lean very hard; after all, he didn't want to hurt her. Tahiri was his best friend, and from the way she always stood up for him, she was probably going to remain that way for the rest of their lives. Involuntarily, he smiled. It was hard to find people as nice as that…

The next thing he knew, he was being pushed back onto his knees. "Get off me," Tahiri whispered, "Someone wants to talk to you." She motioned towards the grate.

Worried about the trouble that he might have put her through, Anakin rolled over until he was facing the grate. A wave of water splashed into his face, and he had to shake his head to rid his skin of the coldness. When he opened his eyes, what he saw next made his blood run cold, then very, very hot.

"So, Mansa Musa!" he hissed. "Coming back to gloat at us after you decided to run away?"

Mansa Musa almost felt like running away right then, but he swallowed his fear and kept his voice steady. "No," he replied. "Mesa sorry about what happened the other day. Mesa wants to help you get out."

"Oh, come on," Anakin snorted. "After virtually deserting us while saving your father, do you honestly expect us to believe you now?"

Mansa Musa sighed. Though he had known that this would happen, he decided to press on. "I'm tellin' the truth," he insisted. "Yousan are Jedi, can't you feel it?"

Tahiri sent a message to him. _'I think he might have a point. His feelings are quite pure.'_

'_But what if he's trying to trick us again?'_

'_That's why the term 'barter' came into existence.' _Tahiri leaned over towards the Gungan. "If you're true to your words," she said, "Then you have to prove it. If you really want to get us out, bring your father to help, too."

Mansa Musa inwardly groaned. "Yousa know, it was so much trouble justa get him out? Now I have to put him back in danger-zone?"

"Call it a way of making sure that you're going to do what you say. If you try to rat on us, your dad gets caught again. If you get us safely out, then we all escape with our lives."

"Mesa is already hated by the society. I'm riskin' a lot just to be talkin' to you!"

"Don't worry; we'll help with the process. Now go back and find your dad. When will you guys be able to come back?"

Mansa Musa thought hard. "Two days from now. Wesa will prepare da Bongo you stole for a quick getaway and put it nearby."

"Thanks. Make sure you come," Anakin called softly as the Gungan swam away. His heart was pounding. So his intuition had been right; someone had come to save them after all.

"Well, he certainly didn't come with clothes or some food," Tahiri said, a bit of humor in her voice. "Why is it that I always see through you during these moments?"

Anakin blushed as he thought of his feelings towards her earlier that night. "You don't mean-"

"I told you that you needed rest. Maybe tomorrow you'll be a little more alert. Anyway," she yawned and leaned back against the wall. "Goodnight, Anakin."

He wasn't sure whether he mumbled a reply or not. One thing was for sure, though: he didn't dare let his guard down after that. He was far too embarrassed to let anything more slip.


	14. Chapter 14: Save me, please

**Sorry for the late update; my mother was at my back for the last week, so I was really busy. Plus there was a case of writer's block…anyway, hope this chapter is okay.**

* * *

The murky depths hid Jacen and his sister from view, allowing them to swim undiscovered towards the Gungan palace. Jaina was right; the water was very cold. Too bad they hadn't thought of putting on an extra layer of clothing before going in.

Finally, Jacen found a perch where he could safely look down upon the Gungan population without having to worry about being spotted. Jaina went further down, settling into a small cavern with an air pocket. There, she pulled out her commlink and immediately began to check her messages. Jacen heard her and bounced a message into her head.

'_Are you checking that now? He's bound to be down there somewhere; when do you want to go?'_

Jaina absently thumbed through her contacts list. _'How about if we wait until dark?'_

'_Good idea. But that's going to take a while; what do you want to do while waiting?'_

'_I don't know what you want to do, but I'm pretty sure what I'll be doing.' _Jaina promptly deleted all the urgent text messages from her mother and concentrated on the few that were from her friends. She had never been a girl that disclosed her secrets to her parents, and was perfectly happy to keep them guessing.

Jacen rolled his eyes and tried to keep from shivering as a slimy creature brushed past his ear. If he got Anakin out of this mess alive, he would be making sure that it didn't happen again.

After what seemed like an eternity, night finally came, and Jaina signaled for Jacen to follow her. They silently swam towards the Gungan palace, making sure that they drifted as smoothly with the current as possible.

Finally, they went into a small bubble on the west side of the massive palace. It seemed to be a storage pantry for fish. Jacen held his nose as they passed through. "Next time," he grumbled, "Why don't we just knock on the front door?"

His sister turned and shot him a pitying look. "They're uncivilized people, Jacen. They don't even _have_ doors."

After a long time in which they mostly walked around in circles, Jacen decided that it would be better to split up. He hurried down a small passageway and decided to try several underwater canals, while his sister cloaked herself in darkness and searched the main hallways.

Jacen used the force to mesmerize the two guards into a stupor before he continued silently down the tunnel. He had to grin as he felt the familiar tug of his brother's presence, leading him down the dark tunnel like a light. And-Tahiri was there too, wasn't she? How in the world had she gotten down here? No doubt Anakin had pulled her along for the ride.

He concentrated on his sister, sending a thought to her mind. _'I'm getting closer to him, Jaina. His presence is getting stronger with every stroke that I take.'_

'_Great. Remind me again which passage you dove into and I'll follow up behind.'_

'_I'll wait for you. The way is pretty simple once you get past the sleeping guards. Down the right tunnel, then into the first hole you see. Keep going till you see me and then we'll do the rest of the way together._

_Sure. Let me get back there…_

It suddenly occurred to Jaina that she had forgotten which way to turn to. Maybe it was down this way…no. She almost panicked. There were so many corridors and places to turn. So where exactly…was she?

* * *

Tatooine. Being one of the driest planets on the outer rim, the people who lived there would never have told you that they didn't once get caught in a sandstorm. Even though Han Solo wasn't a native resident, he had already experienced it.

It had taken him almost an hour to find shelter, and it wasn't an easy task, particularly with the wind sweeping into your face. The small cave that they had finally crawled into was hardly big enough to cover their hides, but at least they wouldn't have to struggle to stay grounded.

Peering out of the little hovel that they had stumbled in the other night, Han realized that he was further out than he thought. Luke was in the back, still sleeping. Walking into the face of a flurry of sand had obviously worn him out.

Han crawled back in and gently shook him. "The storm's over," he said. "We'd better head out and find Lando." Luke, however, did not stir.

The smuggler suddenly had a gut feeling that something was not right. He quickly felt Luke's pulse, and then checked to hear his breath. It came out in short, raspy gasps, as though he were having difficulty breathing.

"Luke. Luke, what's happening?" he asked, shaking him harder.

Luke opened his eyes slightly. "I don't know…getting harder to breathe…" his eyes glazed over and he dropped his head back onto the ground.

Han suddenly had a bad feeling about the whole situation. Gathering his courage, he tilted Luke's head towards the light and looked inside his nostrils. There was no…stuff…blocking the way. But then what was it?

"Your lungs, kid. Do you think there's anything wrong with them?"

"Maybe…" His brother in law coughed up a slimy glob of brown phlegm. "It feels dry, dusty."

"Crud. Open your eyes, Luke," Han shook him yet again. "Have you ever gotten into a storm before, like the one we had last night?"

"Several. It happened all the time when I was younger."

"There's got to be an awful lot of dust in your lungs, then," Han said. "You stay here; I think I'll go check for help." He tumbled out of the hole, shouting for Lando. There was no answer. Sliding down the chasm, he rounded the edge and peered out into the desert. No sign of life.

Han doubled back, almost falling as he went. Maybe there was somebody on the other side. A rock tripped him, and he fell headlong into the dust, sprawling over. When he opened his eyes, he was headlong with a familiar pair of boots.

"Lando!" Han cried. It was the first time that he was overjoyed to see him. He scrambled to his feet-and wished that he had never gotten up.

The boots did not belong to Lando Calrissian. They belonged to a Tuscan raider. And no matter how short he was, he was still dangerous. Han slowly made for his blaster. It was only when his hand reached the holster that he saw it lying on the ground three feet away.

The raider grunted something and pointed at the blaster. Han inwardly cringed, hoping that it didn't sense the urgency in which he wanted to use it. To his shock, his weapon lifted into the air, and was carefully placed in the Sand person's hand. Han closed his eyes. He might as well be prepared to die now.

"What's with the melodrama?"

Leia Organa pulled her mask off, shaking the dust from her hair. "You can never be too careful," she remarked. "Even if I had found Tahiri's tribe, I wouldn't want to catch them in a bad mood."

Han opened one eye. In place of the dangerous Sand person stood his beloved wife. Had a miracle just happened?

"Actually," she said, answering his mental question, "I felt Luke and you struggling last night. Lando called me over as soon as he found his way back to the old moisture farm. He's still around the area, picking up your Womp rats." She wrinkled her nose.

Han wasted no more time. Dragging her towards the hovel, he scrambled back up to Luke, who he pulled out into the light. "I don't think he's going so well."

Leia examined her brother and nodded her head in agreement. "It's a good thing I found you when I did," she said, "Otherwise I don't know what you would have done." She gestured to a small speeder, which Han had overlooked in his frantic search for life. "Shall we get him to safety? I'll drop you off with Lando, but this guy's going to need some medical help."

Together, they loaded Luke onto the speeder and returned to the moisture farm, Han guiltily confessing his sins all the way. When they arrived, Lando had just dismounted from the sky hopper and was now hurrying towards them. "What took you so long?" he yelled. "There's a ton of stuff that needs to be shipped back! I calculated; it's going to take…" he trailed off when he saw the unconscious Luke.

Leia tossed him a commlink. "Call me when you're ready," she said. "I'll get Luke back to Coruscant right away. Han can stay with you. Just don't get into any trouble while I'm away!"

* * *

Once again, Anakin found himself waiting for Mansa Musa. This time, though, he was the one to be rescued. There was no assurance that the Gungan would indeed keep his promise, but there was always the possibility…

As the prisoners took their nightly portions of fish, Anakin jammed a sharp jawbone into a crack beneath the wall. Later, he would use it to begin on the sponge. If Tahiri caught his drift, and they positioned their bodies at just the right angle, then he could…

'_Could what?' _

Anakin bit his lip and tried to block Tahiri out of his mind. The way she lingered in his thoughts was beginning to get annoying. In any case, the way she was sitting was probably good enough to cover the grate. The feeders were just leaving. He quietly levitated the jawbone into his hand and began, slowly but surely, to pick at the sponge.

"Do you really think that's going to be any help?"

"Yes, I do. I read about it in an-urgh! Could you just stop pestering my brain for a few seconds?"

Tahiri made a face. "If you say so," she replied mildly, and turned away. Anakin was relieved to feel her go. For the next few hours, he could actually concentrate and think in peace!

Of course, that was what he had hoped would happen. In actual fact, it was the opposite because the jawbone kept sticking in the sponge, forcing him to painfully rip it out. When the tip finally broke after continued abuse, Anakin muttered a string of unidentifiable words and threw it away.

"Having problems?" his so-called friend asked sweetly. Anakin looked up from his rant to see that she had been busily undoing the pot of slime with her lightsaber. And her hands were tied! Wasn't he supposed to be more force-sensitive than she was?

"Don't be silly, Ani, of course you are," Tahiri giggled. "Your only problem was that you forgot that you even had the force."

Anakin craned his neck to glare at her. "Is it one of your hobbies to prove me wrong?"

"No. My hobby is to use my common sense against your unabashed emotions."

"Forget it." He was blushing furiously now. At least you couldn't tell in the dim light. "Is he going to be here or not?"

"Be patient. For all we know, the Boss could be having a big, crazy parade all over town. They could have been hindered."

"Right," Anakin muttered. He didn't feel much like talking to her after that. For the rest of the night they took shifts, waiting until the time that Mansa Musa and his father came.

"Wesa here. Hurry and let's start digging."

"Good. We've already disabled the slime pot-"

"_I _disabled the slime pot."

"Yeah, yeah, she did." Anakin finished impatiently. "Cut these ropes and then we'll use our lightsaber to help." Jar-jar quickly complied. As he carefully sawed at their binds, he squinted at Anakin, carefully examining his face. He didn't know why, but the boy looked familiar…

Finally, their hands were free. Tahiri immediately scrabbled for her lightsaber. Hurriedly, she ignited it, but almost fell over from the energy that forced the blade out. A pair of hands caught her, their grip gentle but firm, as thought chastising her for her carelessness. She carefully let it slip back into its hilt and turned. It was Anakin.

He coughed slightly and quickly took his hands away. "Um," he said distractedly, "Let's try that again."

After a while, there was a hole that was big enough for Anakin to slip through. Silently rejoicing, the two friends slipped into the water besides Mansa Musa. "I told yousan that I'd be back," he whispered. "Now letsa get tooda Bongo, and fast!"

The current was on their side, and in almost no time, they had reached the end of the tunnel. Anakin went up first, pushing himself through as fast he could-and immediately stopped.

A troop of Gungans stood there, heavily armed and ready with their spears. "Are yousan so stoopid as to be escaping again?" One of them asked him. Cautiously, Anakin nudged his foot, urgently trying to tell Tahiri to swim away as fast as she could. He wasn't fast enough, though. Two strong hands pulled him out of the water, leaving a gasping Tahiri exposed and vulnerable. "Bring them to the bosses," a tall, mustachioed one ordered. The group broke up into smaller sections, leaving the middle open.

It was then that Jacen struck.

Leaping out of his hiding place, he ignited his lightsaber, twisting around to shear off the hands that held Anakin. The solider let out a terrible yelp of pain, and Anakin found himself freed.

"Get out of here!" Jacen roared, slicing another Gungan and his spear in half. "Jaina's found the bay area, go, go, _go_!" He paused, using the force to throw another pursuer back. Anakin could only watch helplessly as his older brother's swiftly exterminated the Gungans. "Come on," Tahiri said, tugging at his tunic. Mansa Musa and his father were already heading back towards the Bongo Bay. With a last look at his distraught brother, Anakin forced the scene from his memory and left it behind.

* * *

**Er…any comments?**


	15. Chapter 15: Bonds broken

**Thanks for the support I received for the last chapter. This is once again rather late (but then, you try copying the entirety of Martin Luther King Jr's speech for homework.)**

Jaina, while stumbling around, had found her way to the Bongos, where she promptly settled herself in. Of course, she had no way of knowing how to manage it, but if her brothers came by, they could probably help her to bring it away from Otoh-Gunga.

Opening a small cabinet to her left, she pulled out a box of tools and what smelled like a three-day old fish. After throwing the fish out and opening the windows a bit, she set the toolbox down and dropped to her knees. There was no harm in trying things out first, though. She bent her head lower, trying to examine the works. This was an interesting vehicle…

A shout alerted her, and she cautiously stood up to see what it was. Anakin was racing towards the Bongo, Tahiri following closely behind. "Jaina!" he screeched. "We have to get going, and fast!"

She opened the door and let them in, pausing to allow Jar-jar and his son to enter. "New friends, huh?" she asked. "Where's Jacen?"

Anakin pushed her aside, settling himself in the cockpit and starting the Bongo up. "He told us to leave; I'm not sure how he'll be doing but he's got a weapon. Come on!"

"What?" Tahiri lunged towards him, pushing the throttle back into position. "You're not going to just leave him like that?"

"Another rescue-ed mission?" Mansa Musa groaned. "Why does mesa always get into da biggest troubles? I'vesa done my part."

"Fine; I'll go get him." Anakin was about to leap out again when he saw nearly a hundred soldiers leaping out of tunnels and through hallways, all advancing towards his Bongo with a fierce gleam in their eyes.

"On second thought," he said, turning the craft round and starting it up, "We'll go back for him later. Mansa and his father can leave, but we're coming back."

"He could be killed by then! We have no time!"

"Jacen's an expert with his lightsaber, though. If we hurry we can still catch him; does he know where to go?"

Jaina thought about this. "I think so…I told him I'd meet him over here later. Even if he doesn't, we'll go back for him. It'll be the last time, too. No more mess ups."

"It had better be." Tahiri put in. Anakin glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. She seemed genuinely concerned about Jacen. Even though she knew fully well that he could look after himself. Involuntarily, he began to wonder about her feelings towards his brother…and what kind of feelings they were.

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After eating some refreshments, completing it with a large swig of beer, Han felt a lot better. Leia had called him up again earlier, assuring him that he would be the first to learn of Luke's condition. Hopefully the kid was going okay.

Lando came into the room, carrying a data pad. "I knew you were going to come back," he said with a knowing look in his eye. "So I made a tally of the animals that I could salvage by myself." He handed the chart to Han, who glanced over it with his eyes wide.

"Um…do you think they're mad at us right now? I mean, we're pretty much overdue…" Lando faltered.

At that point, Han remembered that he had a small slip of paper which detailed the agreement. He had asked for it when they had made the deal, and if he remembered correctly, it was still sitting safely in his pocket. He fished it out, waved it at an astounded Lando, and read it.

When he put it down, he had a sly grin on his face. "I don't remember them setting a time limit. The fact is, we were pushing ourselves when there was actually no deadline stated in the agreement."

"We could wait until Luke is feeling better before we finish. We could even wait till Anakin's married before we finish. There's plenty of time and no limits, plus we have the former Rat hunting champion on our side. Frankly, buddy, there is nothing to lose."

Lando frowned. "Don't be so sure of that yet. I received a call yesterday, and no prizes for guessing who it's from. They said they would be calling you up later, check on your progress and such."

At that precise moment, Han's commlink beeped. "Never a better moment," he muttered as he switched it on.

"Yeah?"

The other end cut right to the point. "Are you done with your quota yet?" the voice hissed. "I know who you are; do not try to hide it."

"Good, because I know you too, chum. Sure, I've got your stuff. Just give me a couple more days to load it up." Han said these words smoothly, as though it was the truth. Lucky for him that not everyone was as force-sensitive as Lukie.

"Hurry up with it, then," the alien said, "It would be so unfortunate if I did not spot you in Taris within the span of three days." The connection went dead.

Han slowly put the commlink down. "Revise that agreement," he said to Lando. "We got three days."

"Think we can make it in time?" Lando asked, pulling out a pen and revising the scrap of paper.

Han mulled over this. "I could always get back into the Sky hopper and get some more. Is it still here?"

"Yeah, in the same place that I found it. It's still a bit dusty from the storm, but still useable. I haven't touched it since yesterday-" here he turned and winked at Han, "-Thought you might want to do the honors."

Han grinned. "Be there. Did Leia leave you anything?"

"Yup, some money to rent a speeder. It's all mine for a couple of days, after that we have to give it back."

"I sure hope the owner won't mind us dirtying it." Han stood up and stretched. "It's time that we got some real work done."

Three hours later, Han's definition of 'real work' had almost been fulfilled. Though the wind had blown strongly, they had made good time. "Thank the Gods that yesterday's bundle wasn't completely wiped," Han called. "We got a lot today, think it should be enough?"

"Well, I'm not going to spend all night counting."

"Okay then…how about if we just bring it back to the farm and leave it there until we find a large ride?"

"I'm not planning on spending another night at the farm." Lando eased himself into the speeder and started it up. "I want to get this load back to Taris as soon as possible, and if it's enough, then I'll catch a ride back home. There's some stuff that really needs to be finished up."

Han blinked. "'Scuse me?"

"Oh, so you thought I'd want to stay on? As I said, I have things to do. I'm a pillar of the Cloud City community. You've got kids and I've got my responsibilities; maybe it's time to go our separate ways."

"Right." Han wasn't in the mood to believe this. "Like I'm going to just let our long-lasting friendship fall apart just because of all this-"

"Not the friendship," Lando said impatiently, waving away Han's discomfort with his hand. "We can keep in touch. All I'm saying is that it might not be a good thing to turn to me for help anymore. I've got no more resources, plus I'm old. Simple as that."

He patted the seat next to him, obviously beckoning for Han to sit down besides him. As they scoured the desert for any extra carcasses, he even began to whistle.

Han didn't say anything.

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_Blip…blip…blip…_

Luke's mind was a haze of odd, uncategorized memories, but as he opened his eyes to the white glare of an artificial light, the feel of sand once again brushed his skin, and for two seconds he was once again a helpless traveler, caught in the desert of Tatooine.

"_Luke…Luke, can you hear me?"_

He blinked, clearing away the glare. Leia had just shaken his arm and was now waiting, expectantly. Immediately he scrabbled on the blankets, struggling to sit up…but fell back again. Fear surged through him, and it took all his strength to contain it. Something white was covering his nose and mouth, which he realized was probably an inhalation mask. Yet he could not breathe.

"The medics said that there was a lot of grit in your lungs," Leia said. "They will be doing surgery to try and clean it out…though I do not know how or when." She paused, looked at him more closely. "Is everything all right?

He struggled again, trying to talk, but instead gurgled up a mixture of grit, mucus and blood, coughing it onto the blankets. A nearby nurse screamed before Leia could beat her to it. Suddenly she was being pushed away as medics swarmed around her brother, talking in low voices and apparently readying him for surgery. The mass became so thick that she could not see him anymore, and in the end, she gave up.

Sending a last well-wish to her brother, Leia returned to the waiting room. In a small chair, wedged between a table and a cheap plastic playhouse, Mara was reading a magazine, as though she was merely waiting for her little one to finish up with the doctor. Leia knew better than to believe this. Though she hid her feelings well, Mara wouldn't be caught dead reading _Galactic Gossip _magazine, particularly not holding it up to her face.

Pushing the publication aside, Leia sat down besides her sister in law and wiped away the tears that had trickled down onto the cheap paper.

"It'll be all right; he'll pull through." Even as she said this, Leia couldn't be sure that her words were true.

"He has to be…" Mara whispered, "He can't leave…it's too early for that."

Leia shivered as cold pain ran down through her spine, and she hugged the woman tighter. "Trust me," she said firmly, "He's weak in body, but his mind is still strong."

Suddenly there was a tremor in the force, one so different from Luke's that you could not mistake it for him. Leia pulled away, realizing that there were now two people in pain.

One of whom was her eldest son.

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Boss Nass had finally given in to his feelings, and had ordered that Jacen be brought into the torture chambers. Two kids who had accidentally gotten lost underwater was one thing. A madman who stomped in and began slaying patriotic Gungans was another.

"Boss!" The Gungan leader turned. Two of his officers had just come into the room. "Hesa be sayin' that he's a relation of Luke Skywalker. Dosan we believe it?"

"What kinds of pain have you subjected tooda him?"

"Oh, sev'rall. Enough to make him look limp round hisan arms and greenish round the face." As if on cue, there was a loud scream from below. Boss Nass winced.

"Ask him more, and den when yousan think he be telling da truth, stop. If he really is a relation, den we do not want to lose him." The officers bowed and hurriedly left.

That night, Boss Nass called a meeting of his advisors and appointed higher-ups. After explaining the situation to them, he presented his question.

"What be yousan thinking about the boy? Hesa brought killing and violence to the peaceful state that we are in. I do not see a reason to trust him."

In the back of the room, a door silently opened. Jar-jar, who had donned a false mustache and elegant costume, thanked the Gods that he had not tripped over his feet for once. He edged his way to the side of the throne room, where he seated himself without too much fuss.

"I say we get rid of him." A lady Gungan, whose body implied that she could have been the underwater version of Jabba the Hutt, straightened her back. "There is no use in keeping him; he is just a ruthless boy." Murmurs arose as the majority of Gungans agreed.

"Still," one person piped up, "It may be true what he says about being a relation of Luke Skywalker. If we hurt him, we may all die."

"Is there a way of proving dat?" the Gungan/Hutt lady retorted. Another scream could be heard from below, presumably belonging to Jacen.

At this point, Jar-jar spoke up. "Excusing me," he said in as low a voice as he could muster, "There may be another way of contacktin' the Jedi."

Boss Nass actually turned and looked at him in the eye. Having been given such an honor, Jar-jar continued to speak.

"Thisen Jedi, they have special power called Da Force. If we could somehow Many-yipulate this, we could talk to Master Skywalker without having to go to da surface. If this boy is really a close relative of him, he should have disen Force too. So…"

"We could be making him to contact Skywalker for us." The Boss stood up. "Stop the torture and bring the boy here," he ordered. "Wesa need him unharmed."


	16. Chapter 16: And so you say

**Leaving for California in three weeks! But don't worry; this story will be finished before that happens. I'm pretty sure that there's enough time for a couple more chapters.**

**Also, thanks for the reviews, I love reading them.

* * *

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And so the meeting commenced. Most of the Gungans broke up into small, quiet groups, talking and taking refreshments from the tables. Jar-jar was tempted to sweep an entire load of food into his gullet, but sadly, his duties entitled him only to take what his mouth could contain.

After excusing himself from several Gungans whose questions seemed a bit too prying, he swam away to the hiding place which Anakin and Mansa Musa had dubbed their Base. It was close enough to keep an eye on Jacen, yet far away enough to make sure that they were safe.

Anakin glanced over his shoulder in greeting. "Any news about him?" he asked, hurrying over. "We just re-did our plan; first we're going to find my uncle, and then we'll bring him back to negotiate for Jacen."

Jar-jar quickly decided that telling Anakin the news of his brother's torture might not be such a good idea. After all, it was always possible that Master Luke might become exceedingly angry with the Gungan race for this. For all he knew, Luke could down with a horde of other people to exterminate their existence from the waters.

"No new news, nothin' good. But they'vesa been planning to contact your unca', too. Maybe we should wait and see what they do first."

"Okay, then you and Mansa can stay to spy. But I really need to get Tahiri back to the surface first."

During the conversation, Tahiri was busily polishing the extra lightsabers, which Jaina had obtained by swimming back to the surface and grabbing them from the ship. According to her report, Ben had been in the flusher and hadn't heard her escape over the noise of the sewage system working.

She finished off the second one and looked up at the two. "He doesn't mean that," she said to Jar-jar. When Anakin turned to stare at her, she met his gaze with an equally challenging one. "I'm fine, and I can stay down here if anything happens. We should be more worried about what's going on in the palace, anyway. There only needs to be two people or so going back up to find Master Luke. That can be either Anakin or Jaina coupled with their cousin."

Mansa Musa stuck his head between his father's and Anakin's face. "Jaina is ready to be goin' Ani!" he said. "Tahiri's stuff is already in a sack. Now all you need to do is be following her to safety.

"Um…" Anakin glanced at his sister, who had indeed packed up ans was already waiting at the edge of the cavern. He tried once more to convince Tahiri. "It might be a good idea to go," he reasoned. "You've been through a lot."

"But not enough to bring me down." She ran over and pulled her knapsack away from the pile. "It takes a long time to stop me from getting into the middle of the action."

The boys glanced at each other and sighed. "Okay. Jaina, will you be able to manage the ship?" His sister shot him a haughty glance. "What do you take me for, some lacy-dress wearing girl? Of course I can manage." She tucked her breather into her mouth. "See you later, then," she added, and pushed herself out into the open.

* * *

Darkness, pain. That was all Jacen felt. He had been beaten, and his back now throbbed with pain. Also, they had taken away his lightsaber, smashing the hilt before his eyes. Now it felt as though something else had been taken out of him, as well. 

Was this the path of a Jedi, that you were tortured for doing something which was supposedly right? What kind of person would even allow himself to fall into this kind of situation, too? Sometimes, it was scenarios like this that made him wonder about the path that was before him.

As soon as he got out of this mess, he was heading to Mrs. Degrasimo's place. She always knew how he felt, somehow. That was a lot more than he could say for his own father.

Half of his feelings were true distress, and half of the, were basically just sulking. But he didn't have time to figure this out for himself. The door suddenly opened, flooding the dim room with light. Before his eyes could adjust to it, two rough hands pulled him to a standing position, forcing him to walk in front of them. He groaned inwardly. No doubt they were taking him before this Boss Nass person. Jacen had never been a fan for Monarchy.

Strangely, though, they led him down to a small, slightly warm chamber buried under the bedrock, where at last he was given over to the mercy of a mustachioed Gungan.

"Sit," he ordered. Jacen tried to get comfortable on the small stool that he had been given. His back still hurt, so he leaned against the sponge. It was a mistake. No sooner had his back hit the absorbent material that it squirted a speeder's capacity of water all over the room.

"Clumsy human!" his interrogator shouted, trying to mop up the water with a rag. "Never, ever do that again, otherwise you won't be going through me again, ya hear?"

"I wasn't planning to, anyways," Jacen muttered under his breath. "Now tell me why I'm here, or I'll-"

"I'll what?" the Gungan leaned over and stared at him intensely. "Yousa are completely defensing-less and unarmed. Your weapon was taken away, and for a good reason too; otherwise somebody might be hurtin. Wesa wouldn't want that to happen, would we?"

"Since when has your primitive race begun to major in Psychology?" Jacen retorted.

"Actually, theysa haven't. I was raised aboveground."

"It figures. You act as snotty as the other ones I've seen."

His interrogator's temper flared, but he forced himself to keep up a good façade outwardly. No need for the Jedi to think that he was gaining an advantage. Time to play a few mind tricks of his own.

"Am I really that bad? What about yousan killing of my kind, mercilessly slaying da Gungans who were simply trying to keep prisoners from escaping?"

"Those prisoners were my _brother and friend. _What would you do, stand by and let them endure the torture that I went through? No…" he shook his head and turned away. "I would never let it happen if I could help it."

"You would do anything to hurt the person who did it?" the Gungan asked softly. Jacen turned away, but nodded.

"Then don't you think that since you have done the same to my brothers, it is just to let you go through the same punishment?"

Jacen jerked his head up, realizing only too late that he had led himself into this trap. Now they would expect him to give them information, or otherwise allow himself to be punished again. He didn't know how to talk himself out; he didn't know what to do…if only Mrs. Degrasimo were here. She would have seen through it, found a way out. But how in the world did he know that?

"Are yousa going to say anything?"

He immediately snapped back into reality. "Yes. First off, I feel that it was a chain reaction. You go after my brother, I go after yours. So now that we both know that, I'll cut straight to the point: I want to get out of here. Do you know what they are going to do with me? Is there anything I can do to convince them that I'm sorry?"

"Personally…I don't think there is." The Gungan examined his nails, under the pretense that he didn't really care. "However, if you could find a witness or someone to help plead for you, there might be hope. As the only people who saw you have either died or escaped, Boss Nass won't easily be convinced."

"My uncle." Jacen's eyes lit up. "I can contact him through the force; he can help me out of this. Will you let me?"

Now he was getting somewhere. His interrogator nodded his head twice. "You may, if it will help."

Jacen wasted no time in kneeling on the floor. He could hardly feel the pain as he crouched low-but before he could do anything, he turned back to stare at the desk.

"Just now, you were trying to convince me that I had done something wrong," he said, "And now it's as if you're trying to help me. What's up with you?"

The mustachioed Gungan smiled thinly and wrote jotted down several notes underneath his desk. "Let's just say…I have objectives of my own." His prisoner gazed at him for several more seconds before turning away, bowing his head as he made contact with his uncle.

* * *

The operation had passed about an hour before, and Luke was sleeping. His lungs were blessedly grit-free, and though it was through a mask, he could breathe again. Mara was watching over him, her mouth silent, but her eyes remaining steady. 

Luke's silence was broken as the force brought emotions to his mind; fright, anger, and of course, the usual pain. Something was wrong, but where was it? Opening his mind to the force, he felt Jacen struggling to contact him. His presence was weak, though, and very far away.

'_Jacen'…_he grappled, tried to reach for something solid, but felt nothing but white sheets. Mara noted this and quickly called a nurse. "What do you think is the matter with him?" she asked. Seeing Luke's discomfort, she went in, tried to soothe him back to sleep. Yet she could not. For though his body eventually calmed and he fell asleep again, Jacen's thoughts were still imprinted in his memory. He could not forget.

* * *

After a long journey, the _Millennium Falcon _finally landed on a flat strip outside the ruins of the city of Taris. Han seemed to feel his gut clench as he saw his former Sabacc opponents already standing outside. He struggled to calm it. Who knew? He could be a couple of rats ahead of his number…or perhaps just a treacherous few behind. 

"Thank goodness that you are back!" the first one greeted him. "We thought something sinister might have happened to you." Han was about to smile back when he suddenly realized that his welcome wasn't meant to be welcoming. Coughing, he straightened his back and resumed business.

"There are more than enough of your…hides in the _Falcon_", he explained. "Count them in your spare time, but first give us the credits. Right now I'm in a rush."

Lando had obviously chosen not to participate in the conversation, and was busily giving the second alien an overview of where everything in the ship was. Not knowing what else to do, Han tipped his head. "Well…"

'Well?"

"Can I have my money?" He was done with the greetings and the manners. If this guy didn't hand over the cash, he would blow his head through right then and there.

"Don't lose your cool just yet, Solo. Let's have a little drink first; and then after we settle the deal, I will give you the money." He seemed to be a bit too relaxed for his dealings, and somehow, some things just didn't fit. Nevertheless, Lando seemed to be at peace with the two, and came up to them, about to follow them into the building. Before he turned, he glanced back at Han expectantly.

There was pressure to join the crowd, and he couldn't resist. Just a chat and a drink, then the money and another burden gone. Simple.

So he allowed himself to be brought inside and coaxed onto a sofa. It was Womp rat pelt, no doubt. After picking up four thousand mammals of the same species, you begin to recognize the texture of their fur. Lando sat down besides him, and when a droid offered them some small glasses, they took them gratefully.

"You could give us our pay in advance, and then call us back if there's any trouble," Han suggested. "My wife…" he shuddered and stopped. His opponent gave him a knowing look.

"Yes, they are rather picky about such trivialities, aren't they?" he said smoothly, and then "Tell her you'll be late for a few more days."

"Will you be able to count them by tomorrow, at least?"

"Possibly…until then, you must stay with us. We have so many spare rooms…"

"Please." Lando suddenly stood up. "We've been working for over ten days, and it's about time that you gave us what you owe. Han's brother was almost killed over this deal, and he won't be happy if you don't offer compensation."

"Compensation?" the alien laughed. "Remember, my friend here won the Sabacc game. We alone have the upper hand."

Han began to feel uneasy again. "Yes, but-"

Lando suddenly fell to the ground. At first Han thought it might be a seizure or something to do with old age, but suddenly he felt the same sensation, pushing against his insides as though it were a large, sour lump. The next thing he knew, the contents of his stomach were on the floor, and his body was soon to be there as well.

"Clean up the mess, then take them away," the alien ordered, and as Han was dragged aside, he could still hear his opponent's silky voice flowing throughout…

"_We alone have the upper hand."_

* * *

**Yup, I always end with cliffhangers, but then, that's what I always do. :P**


	17. Chapter 17: Bring me back to life

Jaina was dripping wet by the time that she reached her ship, but she couldn't have cared less. She could feel Jacen's pain and confusion through the force, which was more than enough to keep her going. Gasping for breath, she opened the hatch, stumbling straight into Ben.

"Waah!" the ten-year-old cried as his nose made contact with the floor. The drink that he had been carrying fell, spilling all over Jaina's boots. Glancing up, his eyes widened as he saw his cousin. "Wha-when did you come back?"

Jaina pushed past him, stripping off her wet jacket and settling down in the cockpit. "Just now, what do you think? I don't have time to explain, but we have to get back to your dad, fast." Ben hurriedly sat down besides her as she readied the ship. Soon, they were soon heading back to Coruscant.

"So…"

Jaina turned to face Ben. Now that things had settled down a bit, she might as well take the opportunity to ask. "What happened to you while I was gone?"

"Oh, after I woke up, I heard your droid Threepio, shouting at Artoo over a speaker. When I found it, I forced him to tell me everything. He begged me not to go after you, though. He said that Jacen had forbidden me to." Ben twisted in his seat, trying to look down at the disappearing Naboo below. "By the way…where is Jacen?"

She stiffened. Was Ben so dull as not to be able to use the force? "He's…still there," she assured him, "But we have to get your dad to see him before Jacen will agree to come back."

"What happened to Anakin?"

"Er…the same goes for him. They're having some problems. The faster we find your dad, the faster they come back."

"Well, I don't want to go back. My dad and mom are way too busy to care about me anymore. Couldn't I go down into the lake and find Anakin?"

"Or…" Jaina expertly maneuvered the craft away from a lone meteor, causing Ben's breakfast to lurch upwards. "You could simply hide here when I go find your dad, and then sneak over to my place and find Aunt Leia. Trust me; she'd love to have you over." She grimaced as she imagined her mother, wistfully ruffling Ben's hair while remembering her own children and their various adventures during babyhood.

'_Sure, go ahead…it's not like I'd want to put myself in that position, anyway.'_

After a while, Coruscant came into view. After obtaining clearance, Jaina landed in her family's section of the hangar bay. Before she even had a chance to get out of the ship, Ben had already opened the doors and was rushing towards the apartment.

At the last moment, he remembered and flew back towards her. "Jaina! What's the password to get up?"

"My personal one is 'KILL3PO'. Use it to get up, and remember not to hang around too long in the hallways!" Ben bobbed his head and quickly left.

Now all she had to do was find her uncle. Jaina turned back towards the ship. She would go back to Yavin 4, and there she would explain the entire situation to him. It was about time that her family knew about Anakin, anyways…

Something caught the corner of her eye. Looking out across the bay, she saw her mother and Aunt Mara descending from their ship. They wore passive faces, but held eyes that were full of fire. Realization hit her: they had already figured it out.

* * *

Mansa Musa, being the most agile in water, had been the one to go out on the recon mission. It was a good thing, too. Stealth wasn't his specialty, and thinking up plans made his head swim.

He slipped between the sponges, silently making his way down. According to Anakin, Jacen would already be down there. Their psychic relationship sounded a bit uncanny to Mansa Musa's long ears. However, when he had pulled Anakin aside for questioning, the look of pain was so obvious on his features that the Gungan decided to give it up altogether. If he developed a good enough relationship with Anakin, then all might be revealed one day.

'_Go through the slime pit area, and then snoop around until you find him. He should be around there.' _He would have to trust Anakin's advice on this one, for though he worked in the palace, there were several places which were forbidden for underlings. The weaponry and interrogation rooms included.

"Sit," a loud voice said. There were traces of an accent, so it probably belonged to a more educated Gungan. Mansa Musa pressed his ear harder against the sponge, resulting in the emission of a steady stream of water.

After shaking his head to rid himself of the squishy feeling, he quickly peeked inside. If he had thought that the water in his situation was bad, then the condition of the Interrogation room was much worse. He could even have sworn that he heard cursing.

Finally, he shook his head of all gibberish and continued to eavesdrop-squeezing his ear a tad gentler, of course.

"Since when has your primitive race begun to major in Psychology?" This voice was cold and harsh, probably belonging to Jacen.

"Actually, theysa haven't. I was raised aboveground."

There was an obnoxious snort, rather resembling that of a sea cow's. "It figures. You act as snotty as the other ones I've seen."

Mansa Musa winced. There were only two interrogators that had been raised above ground. One of them was awaiting trial due to an unsightly outburst of frustration while questioning a dredge of seaweed. The other Gungan was, in Mansa Musa's opinion, much worse.

As the conversation continued, Mansa Musa made mental notes of everything that happened between the two. He was going to have a lot of reporting to do when he went back to the base…

Finally, it appeared that the interrogator and the human had finally settled their conflicts. Mansa Musa turned and headed back to the cave. Now that everything was figured out, Anakin and Tahiri could plot their next move. It was all a matter of time.

* * *

Han woke up to a splitting headache. When he tried to look around, he found out that his right eye could only open halfway. The other one had jagged vision, due to the after-effects of the…drink?

That was right, he could remember now. Lando's slimy alien friends and their treacherous way. From what he was seeing, they had roped him down to a chair. The nerve! One day, he would come back with a horde of Luke's friends, and _then _they would see who had the upper hand.

Something tightened around his wrists, and before he could figure out what it was, his head made contact with the ground. "Oops," a voice said above him. It was coming from Lando, even though it sounded as though it were a thousand miles away.

"I just woke up. So you're here too?"

"Well, of course! You probably don't remember, 'cause you were knocked out first."

Lando swiveled his head as far as it could go, then attempted to move off the chair. "Han, could you help me edge over to that window? The small one over there?"

It took a little grunting and a lot of effort, but finally, they were positioned so that they could see through the window without anyone being able to look up and see them as well. Lando leaned back, wincing as his spine crackled.

"Sheesh, could you get on with it?" Han muttered. He had doubled over on his stomach, so as to allow Lando to get a better view. His friend quickly peeked out through the window-and ducked his head back in relief.

"Oh, they're counting the carcasses," he replied calmly, trying to hide the relief in his voice. "Soon we'll be decreed as innocent, and then you can bring me home."

"Good, I hope that time comes soon."

Han immediately wiggled towards the back of the room. Unfortunately, his movements did not keep in-synch with Lando's slow ones, and the two of them crashed down on the floor.

"This is going to cause one hell of a headache," Lando muttered. Heavy vibrations on the floor alerted them of somebody's presence, and they were hauled back onto the chair. Roughly, their binds were cut and, tripping and stumbling, they were pulled into yet another small room.

Han glanced up to see his old enemy, glaring at him. "So," he said, "You managed to get everything."

Despite himself, Han grinned. "We told you that we would, right?"

"Yes…" the extraterrestrial waved his hand dismissively. "Your Sabacc opponent prepared the money several days ago." Reaching under his chair, he pulled out a case. When he opened it, both men caught a glimpse of more credits than they had ever seen in their lives. And just sitting together like that, too.

"Like it?" the alien smirked. "I hope you plan on doing a lot of laundering, then. You see, it is all false."

If you could only see the look on Han's face when he heard those words. It looked as though his world was crumbling over his ears. Luckily, Lando remained alert as the alien continued on his instructions.

"You can exchange it, sell it, and continue to circulate it until you don't have a single false credit with you. It took us a while to copy them, you know."

His calm, slightly clipped accent continued to torture Han, nearly driving him over the edge. You could hardly stand it if you didn't resort to violence. Why was it always them, Han and Lando, who were mixed up in these sorts of things?

"Don't start complaining to me now. We won the bet, remember. We can choose what we give you, what your wages are, and revise the deal as many times as we want-"

There was a loud snap, and suddenly, the table in the room was overturned, the plates and furnishings strewn aside. Han was grasping for the alien's throat, trying to find a weak spot which he could twist and turn around in his hands…

"Stop!" Lando tumbled over, tried to keep him from doing any more harm. Yet even he was not strong enough to prevent Han's anger from getting in the way. There was a last strangling sound, a jerk and a cry. The Alien's neck fell to one side, limp and lifeless on the sofa cushions.

"Damnit, Han, what did you do?" Lando growled. "I didn't like him either, but you didn't have to go that far. If they find us, we're dead."

"Shut up while I think of something!" Han cut in. His forehead wrinkled, as though the brain that it concealed was enlarging itself to fit his needs. Finally, he glanced up.

"First, we'll take the money. Whether it's fake or not, it doesn't matter anymore." He seized the bag. "Then, we sneak out through the _other _doorway, instead of this one. And now…" he shoved Lando towards the door. "We get to the Falcon and run for it."

Several minutes later, Lando had secured the hatch, and Han was already in the pilot's seat. He let the engine warm up, and then attempted to bring it up. Yet the Falcon would not start.

They were attracting attention now. Several of the alien workers were staring suspiciously at the craft. There was a loud shout from inside; the body would have been discovered by now. 'Come on, come on,' Han muttered under his breath. He tried pulling the throttle-and at last, it worked. The _Millennium Falcon _took off, leaving the ruins of Taris far behind.

As soon as they had lost sight of the planet, both men collapsed on the floor. It was time to call it a day.

* * *

Even though Jaina had taken great pains to explain everything clearly to him, Luke was still a bit confused. Gungans? Hidden underwater city? Though there was something odd about the whole thing, it made sense in a way. After all, he had felt something wet when Jacen's presence had been picked up…

"But Luke's too weak for this," Mara cut in. "He just got out of surgery, and can't possibly go swimming."

"Of course there are going to be problems, but if we don't hurry then my brother is going to get killed!" Jaina sprang up, knocking over her chair. "Anakin said that when he was still a captive, the leader of the Gungans said that they would need to talk to Luke Skywalker in order to bargain for his freedom."

These burdens all eventually fell to him; there was no doubt about it. Luke straightened his back.

"It's fine. I feel better already. Don't tell them I'm gone, and give some excuse when they find out. I'll be back within 48 hours, if Jaina can fly me fast enough." He winked at her.

His niece beamed. "Sure. But at least put on better clothes than you're wearing right now. They probably don't take kindly to pajamas-wearing Jedi."

"Okay, but then you girls will have to clear out and give me some privacy." It took a while for him to find his tunic under the pile of clothing on the visitor's chair, but at last, he was ready. Giving Mara a quick kiss and a promise to be back soon, he quietly followed Jaina to her ship. They were heading back to Naboo for what would hopefully be the last time.


	18. Chapter 18: Going, going, gone

**Next-to-last chapter. Thank you for all the continued support; you guys are the best!**

If, during the time in which this story happened, you were swimming by a small cave near the underwater city of Otoh-Gunga, and decided to peek into it, you would have been up for a surprise. Four beings, two human and two Gungan, had made their residence in there, and were not planning on giving it up until the last of their kind was brought back to them.

On one side of the cavern were weapons, such as spears and throwing nets, mostly primitive technology. These were mostly filched from the Gungan storage rooms. Yet, hanging from the humans' belts were two shining black sheaths. They stood as signs, warning people never to underestimate the power that they held.

The two humans, otherwise known as Tahiri and Anakin, were busily polishing up their lightsabers. Since Jaina had gone, they had been busily preparing themselves for a last visit to Otoh-Gunga. Mansa Musa, upon snooping around, had discovered rumors of a trial concerning Jacen's murders. Anakin had already brought this to Jaina's attention, but he wasn't sure whether she was going to be in time.

"There bein' drumbeats from da city!" Jar-jar stumbled over to them. "Should wesa be goin' now?"

"We still have plenty of time." Anakin thought back to earlier that day, when he had felt Jaina and his uncle coming towards them. Had they been on schedule, they would have arrived around this time as well. Yet there was no sign of anyone coming down into the water.

At least he still had backup plans, though. None of them would have missed the trial for anything. Tahiri and Mansa would be sneaking to the left side of the force field which surrounded the throne room, and he would stay with Jar-jar on the right. If something unexpected happened, one group could grab Jacen while the other could distract the people inside.

There was a loud clunking sound. Tahiri jerked her head up to see a tall figure, fully clad in Gungan body armor. "Mesa finished," came a voice from beneath the layers.

"Oh, Mansa," she laughed, pulling his protective mask off, "You won't be able to move in that thing." Slowly, she helped him out of his ridiculous suit. It was hard not to stare at her, when she was laughing so easily despite the serious circumstances. Somehow, Anakin found it hard not to grin, too.

"Like her?"

Now it was his turn to stare. Jar-jar was behind him, positioned in the way that a person eager to share secrets might stand. Typical adult nosiness. Anakin decided that the best thing to do was to politely inch away from him.

"Nothin' to be worrying youself about. I'm sure she be liken you as well."

This was getting a bit uncomfortable. Maybe he could shift the conversation away from himself without acting rude. "Well…Tahiri and I have just been friends for a long time. It's normal for us to be friendlier than usual." He quickly finished up his lightsaber and hurried over to his friends.

"Jar-jar is right," he said hurriedly. "We should hurry. I don't want to miss anything important." After a brief review of the plan, the four split up.

Anakin dragged Jar-jar to the right end, behind the throne room. Sadly, his natural clumsiness, coupled with his advance in years, made him quite useless. They would lurk here.

Mansa Musa, on the other hand, was the one leading Tahiri through the palace. He knew the floor plan better than she did, anyway. Just outside the throne room were two decorative pieces of coral. They would be able to hide behind them without being spotted easily.

There was a strange creaking sound from behind them. Mansa Musa almost craned his head to look, but his partner held him back. She had sensed it several moments before it happened, and now that it was happening, it was important that she transmitted the message to Anakin before it was too late.

Guards were gathering around the edges of the city, and force-field gates were closing in. Nobody could get in or out. In other words, they were trapped.

* * *

C-3PO was busily folding the family laundry when he heard loud stomping noises outside in the apartment hallway. Before he could compute the information required to lock the front door, it was yanked open, and Han Solo stumbled in. Before the golden droid could protest, he grabbed a drink from the cooler, collapsed in a chair, and only _then_ did he remember his promise against alcohol. Quickly, he threw it back in.

"Good day, sir," Threepio intoned politely. "It has been a while since I have seen you last-"

"Where's Leia?" the former smuggler cut in. He had finally realized what was missing from the usual homey atmosphere.

"She's at the medic center, Master Han. I have been in charge for the last few days." There was a tinge of pride in his metallic voice. Only last year, Jaina had programmed him to do household chores as well as translate, and now he was already running the Solo residence. Who knew? Next might be the upkeep of the _Millennium Falcon_?

Seeing the dreamy look in Threepio's eyes, Han had to chuckle. "Save your dreams for later, Goldenrod. I need to talk to Leia about something; could you please tell me how to get her?"

"You would have to see for yourself, as I am not entirely sure whether she kept her commlink on."

"Damn," Han muttered under his breath. He stood up and flung open the door-

-and saw his wife, standing in the hallway. Apparently, she had also been about to go inside. Mara was coming up behind her with a case full of the kid's clothes. It was strange that she was only bringing those and not the owner himself.

"Where did you put Luke?" he asked, his eyes scanning the women's faces. At last they rested on Mara, whose friendly yet tight-lipped smile revealed most of the story to him. Taking a deep breath, he gestured towards the apartment. "Why don't we sit down and discuss things?" he asked.

An hour later, Han managed to sort things out with his wife. It had taken a considerable amount of begging and reasoning, but in the end she forgave him. Mara sat uncomfortably on a chair, trying not to feel a bit left out. There was no guarantee that she was going to have this kind of conversation with Luke after this, and that in itself was what made her feel uneasy.

"Oh, and concerning Ben…" she cut in, hoping that she hadn't ruined anything, "Have either of you seen him anywhere?"

"Jaina told me that he would be coming here, but I haven't seen him, and neither has Threepio," Han replied. "Could he have snuck past us, or gotten into the wrong apartment?"

"It's possible." Leia was already scanning through her contacts list. "I could call the neighbors, to see if a little boy was passing by their place…he often gets lost like this, so I wouldn't be surprised."

Ben, meanwhile, was wandering around the apartment complex, trying to figure out where his aunt lived. He could remember a bit from the last time he had come; it was on the second floor. But…where exactly was it?

He decided to take a lucky guess. If the force was truly with him, then he would be able to find the residence without too much trouble.

Closing his eyes, he breathed in deeply, hoping that he would find the right one. To his relief, he felt the force flowing through him. So he wasn't that unlucky, after all. It took some concentration, but he finally narrowed it down to a single door, on the far left of the hallway. He walked up to it and rang on the doorbell.

The first thing that came out of the apartment was a bad-smelling cloud. It reminded him of the Jedi academy's laundry room-a mixture of sweat and other odd things. He coughed once, and the cloud cleared to reveal…an old lady, leaning on a cane. "Yes?" she asked.

Ben blinked. He had been so sure…but how had the force been within this household? It was impossible…his family would have felt it, they would have known. A door opened to his left, and Mara Jade stepped out, as though just happening to pass by. Turning to the right, she spotted Ben, who tried in vain to shrink away.

Han stumbled out of the apartment to find Mara already enveloping her son in a hug. The kid could have been suffocating, but the look on his face signaled relief and even a few tears. Smiling, he apologized to the owner of the other apartment.

"'Hem…sorry for bothering you, Mrs. Degrasimo. We had some troubles at home, but they're all solved now." Carefully, he lead Mara away. "Thanks, though," he called behind him.

Mrs. Degrasimo stood in the doorway. The boy had sensed her; his startled look had given it all away. Clearly he was from the Skywalker clan. Her mind raced. Sooner or later, his mother would find out. If she didn't take care, his family would eventually realize…

Shaking her head, she closed the door. Time to pack up her things and move to a different planet.

* * *

As soon as they landed, Jaina rummaged in her pockets. Taking out a breather and popping it into Luke's mouth, she said, "Come on, I'll show you the way."

The water was dark and cold, but Luke found it to be a relief from the harsh climate of Tatooine. However, he was still weak from the near-death experience. As a result, his health wasn't up to the best standards.

Jaina was probably the only thing that helped him along, pulling him through the waters and helping him avoid the dangerous underwater creatures.

When they arrived at the Gungan palace, though, the gates were shut. Light shone out of the top, but the sides and the rest were shielded via a strange force field. Furthermore, there were guards stationed everywhere, and they certainly didn't look friendly. How would they get in?

"Stay here," Jaina whispered, "I'll go search for another way in." Luke hid behind the reef while she swam off. He could hear Conch shells being blown, their notes sounding out in a single melancholy sound. Not long after that, drums began to beat. The Gungans were making a big fuss about the whole trial thing.

A sticky hand tapped him on the shoulder. Jumping up in surprise, he immediately cursed himself for being so idiotic. It was only Anakin; he should have known.

"Uncle Luke!" he hissed. "Jacen is in there, and they're ready to begin trying him. I've found a way to get you in there, but we have to hurry!"

"Jaina is still out there; she was trying to find the way in as well."

"Oh…" Anakin glanced over his shoulder, "Tahiri should be getting to her by now. There are only a few more chances to get in, plus the trial has already started. Come on, let's go." He tugged on his uncle's sleeve.

He led him through a side tunnel and several passageways, all the while giving him a brief description of the situation. "How do you know where all these places lead to?" Luke asked. The youth waved his hand. "Oh…I've been here for a while. If you have a good guide, you eventually pick stuff up from him."

"And who might this guide be?"

"Well…hey, we're almost there." Anakin quickly lifted up a soggy patch of sponge, motioning for his uncle to go through. "Just climb up, and you should be able to get into the throne room."

Luke pushed himself through the hole. It was smaller than he had expected, and rather bad-smelling, too. But at last, he found the top. Pulling off the cover, he emerged in the very center of the throne room. Something fell on top of him, and he realized that when coming through, he had tripped Jacen over. The last time Luke had carried him was when he was two years old. Since then, he had certainly gained a lot.

"Ah…Jedi Master Skywalker." Boss Nass lifted himself from his chair. "We were just about to start reading off the sentence." There were titters from all around.

"That's very nice, sir," Luke replied politely, "But that only applies if I don't come. My nephew communicated with me through the force about a day ago, and he requested my presence here. Therefore…I ask you now for the release of Jacen Solo.

Boss Nass laughed. "If you had come a day earlier, we would have. It was a little thing at first. Two children were caught down here, and we just wanted to make sure that they were not spies and confirm the overthrow of the empire. However, hesa-" of course, all eyes were on Jacen at this point, "Was attempting to pull them out before you came, and also killed more than fifteen of our soldiers. You will have to do a lot of convincing to let him go."

Now it was Luke's turn to stare. "Is he telling the truth?" he demanded. Jacen did not answer. So _that _was the reason why he had been called down here? To bail out a murderer, who also happened to be of his own blood?

After calming himself, he came up with something to say. "I'm sorry for that," he finally said. "Jacen is a Jedi, one who has the force. He should not have done such a thing, and I understand your anger. But please, think of what happened for him. His younger brother was kept in your palace, and he had no other way to bring him out. Jacen came without any knowledge of your customs or plans. What would you have done, if it were your brother?"

Boss Nass's flabby cheeks turned upwards in a menacing grin. It wasn't a pretty sight. "I never had a brother."

"But you must realize that Jacen was simply showing brotherly love-"

The Gungan leader pounded his fist on the arm rest of his throne. "Tell me," he boomed, "Are you indeed who you say, the Jedi Master? The one who trains such youth, that they bring destruction on others?" Behind the coral, Tahiri winced. This was starting to sound ugly.

"I am-"

"And were you the one who destroyed the emperor, eliminated the tyranny?"

"Well…" Most people fancied Luke to be the one that actually dumped Palpatine down the reactor shaft, but in reality, his father had been the one to do it. "I did kill him, though I'm not extremely proud of it." There was no harm in a little white lie every now and then…

"Then we are done. Release the boy." Protests rang from all around, but at that moment, Boss Nass uttered a string of gibberish so violently _loud _that half of his advisors shrank back in fear.

"Even the most simpleton-ies here shoulda be understanding," he said, after calming down a bit. "The empire is gone. We had no reason to fear the two youngalings who came down here, but we put them into da slime pits anyways. This boy Jacen's reaction was natural. Wouldn't wesa, too, go after one of our kin?" Turning back to Luke, he winked. "Yousan are free to go."


	19. Chapter 19: Bonds in the end

As they hurried out of the city, Mansa Musa gave Anakin quick instructions on getting back. "We need to head straight to the surface!" he warned. "A big group like usen may attract attention from da local gooberfish."

"Thanks, Mansa," Anakin replied, and quickly directed the group to do so. As they swam, he turned back and said, "You really helped us a lot. Even though you abandoned me and were the one to rat on Tahiri in the first place, I know that you were just trying to help your dad."

"Yah…you helped me too. Jar-jar Binks, my father, he can go up tooda surface and start over a new life." There was an awkward silence as they both thought about everything they had been through. Finally, the Gungan patted him on the shoulder.

"Maybe I will be seein' you sometime later," he said, and to both his and Anakin's surprise, he awkwardly hugged him. "Miss you, Ani."

"I'll miss you too, Mansa." They had reached the place where Jaina's ship was parked. Jar-jar took his son in the opposite direction, to Naboo. Taking one last look at his friend, Anakin boarded the craft.

* * *

The ride back was mostly peaceful. Of course, there had been several problems concerning dry tunics and gelatinous seaweed, but eventually everything had been sorted out. Luke and Jaina took turns flying, leaving Jacen to rest peacefully for the duration of the trip. Tahiri sat in the back with Anakin, quietly discussing what had happened.

"Mansa Musa was good in the end," Tahiri remarked. "Even though he was still a half-witted, dumb Gungan, I guess I forgave him."

"I forgave him as soon as I saw that look of repentance on his face. You really should learn how to find compassion in your heart."

"Hah, that's you all right." She playfully punched him on the shoulder. "Always so soft." Anakin laughed and pushed her over, tickling her on her stomach. "Hey!" Luke called behind him. "She's a girl; at least have some respect for her!"

Suddenly remembering his manners, Anakin sat back, grinning sheepishly at his actions. "I hope I didn't offend you."

"No, it's all right." Tahiri pushed a strand of hair back from her face. "We're friends, aren't we?"

"Yes," he replied, attempting to push all alien thoughts from his mind. They sat side by side, thinking but not saying a word.

'_And who knows? One day we might even be something more.'

* * *

_

Almost half of the Jedi academy had gathered outside. The other masters had tried to call them back in, but they were obviously waiting for Luke to come back. Most of the younglings had developed a strong bond with him. Finally, something emerged out of the sky and landed in the hangar bay.

"Luke!" Mara waited until the younglings had cleared away until approaching him. "Did everything go well?" she asked. Her husband grinned and hugged her. "It was a success," he replied. "Jacen is going to spend a few weeks at home, though. He needs some time out of the academy."

Mara laughed. "I thought it was Anakin who was supposed to take a break?"

"Oh…I let him decide whether he wanted to come back or not. I was thinking about it too. Because we were trying to make sure that the younglings finished their training, we neglected the older ones, and their possible development into more Jedi and more hands." He pulled away and held her at arm's length. "Maybe we should re-think our training schedule for the better."

She sighed. "Yes, but do we really have a choice? There are so many students, and we really have too much to handle on our own. Plus-" she glanced over at Ben, "Our own son needs attention, too."

Luke nodded. "I'll keep writing letters to the Senate about our dilemma, they're bound to listen one day. And as soon as Jacen comes back, I'll apprentice him, and find the other students some Masters as well. It's about time for them to learn."

"And one more thing," he said, a spark of light in his eye, "You don't have to worry about my health. I'm fine enough to go on; otherwise I wouldn't have gone down with Jaina. If you think about it, tonight would be a great time to go out."

For the first time in a while, Mara Jade felt her face breaking out into a smile. "Just the two of us?"

"Of course. But to be fair, next time we'll bring Ben."

* * *

"Here's the money, all stacked up and folded for you." Han reluctantly imparted the folder to his neighbor, who grinned widely and immediately started to count bills.

"Say, do you want to come in?" he asked. "I recently bought a new case of drinks, directly from the fruits of Naboo-"

"Er…no thanks. I've quit drinking." Quickly, Han escaped back to his apartment, hoping that his neighbor wouldn't figure the truth about the credits. Since he had told Threepio to clean out, was completely sterile of alcohol. His wife was already in bed reading-the excitement had pretty much worn her out. Jacen's room was right down the hall, but he decided not to disturb the kid.

The lights in his bedroom turned off at precisely 10:00. As soon as he could hear Leia snoring, Han sat up in bed and groped around for his clothes. Kissing her quietly on the cheek, he hurried towards the bay window, which he opened as silently as possible. Coruscant was aglow with the lights of the great city that it held, and for several moments, he was almost entranced by them.

"Psst! Are you going to get down here or not?"

Han shook his head, rousing himself out of the stupor. Looking down on the city below, he pushed his body out of the window and jumped.

Being a normal man and not a lunatic, the only reason why he had done so was because Lando had been hovering in a speeder underneath him. A few simple commands and the vehicle was on its way, zooming down the back alleys of Coruscant.

He slowed when they had found one place deserted enough to talk in relative privacy. "Leia…she doesn't know that we met, right?" Lando's face took on a expression of worry.

"Nah, she's sleeping like an angel. We have a couple of hours before I get too tired to talk; it had better be fast."

"Yup." The leader of Cloud City immediately got down to business. "Say…have you given your neighbor the money yet?"

These words brought a grimace to Han's lips. "The guy was so happy with the loot that he didn't even check to see whether it was fake or not. Hopefully he'll gamble it all away or something, he seems like the type of person to do so."

There was a silence between them, and then Lando spoke up again. "Hey, about what I said the other day…you know what I meant, right?"

"Oh yeah." He grinned and pinched Lando on the stomach. "You're not as young as you used to be. No more wacky adventures for you."

"Then don't drag me into them." Another uncomfortable stillness arose, and for a few minutes, neither of them had any idea what to say.

Finally, Han said quietly, "I was thinking of 'retiring' from this business, too. Sneaking around used to have its thrills, but since that incident with Lukie…" he shook his head woefully. "I guess I've finally grown up."

Surprisingly, Lando leaned over and patted him on the shoulder. "We all have to learn some day," he said. "I'll still help you in time of emergencies, but only with one condition."

"Please not money, because if it is I am officially canceling all relations between us-"

His friend held a finger to his lips. "Just _don't tell Leia about us, _it's that simple. Fine by you?"

Han broke out into a laugh. "You old scoundrel…"

* * *

Mrs. Degrasimo was carefully storing her data files in a safe box. They would hide there until she found another place to live. There was a knock at the door, and quickly covering the files with a cloth, she answered it.

"Jacen! But it's so late-"

"You told me to come over whenever I felt like it, and obviously, you're not sleeping yet. My dad doesn't know I went out, but trust me, he won't mind." Jacen sat down on a stool in the foyer. "I just came back from Naboo-my brother turned out to be okay, after all," he added.

"That's good," Mrs. Degrasimo smiled at him. "Was everything all right in the end?"

"Yes…I'm still kind of tired from all that physical work, though." He glanced around at the messy apartment. "Are you doing a paint job or something?"

How would she explain this? "Er, actually, I've decided to move. I don't like staying in one place for too long. The quiet life is too…" she waved a hand, "…quiet for me."

Jacen raised his eyebrows in agreement. "I don't like staying at home for too long, either. Do you know where you will be moving?"

"Not yet. Why?"

The boy scratched the back of his neck. "I don't know…somehow it's calming to talk to you. As though something has been released in me-small but relaxing in its way."

'_That must be the aura of Force around me,' _Mrs. Degrasimo thought, taking care to put up a mental shield. Thankfully, he did not appear to feel it. "I could give you my commlink number," she suggested, "and you could call whenever you felt like it."

Thirty minutes later, Jacen left feeling warmed by the number in his pocket and the hot cocoa which had been given him to drink. Mrs. Degrasimo resumed packing, all the while meditating about the future.

It was unclear, that was for sure. But many things could happen. Sometimes all it took was a little influence, a slight pressure to turn a chain of events upside down.

**Brought to you by Holie-short, a tired fanfic writer**

**Yup, that's it! Thanks to all who read and reviewed; it was really appreciated. My place is leaving tomorrow, so don't expect anything for a while. I might write another fanfiction spiraling off this one (note the sinister, hinting end), but most likely it will be when I get myself a more efficient way of writing (notebooks are a pain). **


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